An adaptive electronic throttle control strategy is proposed with the aim to provide robust and precise positioning of the throttle plate. The control strategy consists of a PID controller and a nonlinear compensator of friction and limp-home effects. The adaptation mechanism includes auto-tuning and self-tuning algorithms. The auto-tuner provides automatic adjustment of the key control strategy parameters without any prior knowledge of the process parameters. The self-tuning algorithms are based on the permanent, on-line estimation of the DC motor armature resistance, battery voltage, and limp-home position. The control strategy and the adaptation algorithms are verified experimentally.