An exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) valve positioning system that positions an EGR valve pintle includes a predicted temperature fuzzy logic module, an under heat fuzzy logic module, an over heat fuzzy logic module, and a multiplication module. The predicted temperature fuzzy logic module determines a predicted temperature of the pintle and generates a predicted temperature modifier based thereon. The under heat fuzzy logic module generates an under heat modifier representing the temperature of the pintle during warmup of an engine. The over heat fuzzy logic module generates an over heat modifier representing the temperature of the pintle after warmup of the engine. The multiplication module communicates with the predicted temperature fuzzy logic module, the under heat fuzzy logic module, and the over heat fuzzy logic module and generates a modifier signal based on the product of the predicted temperature modifier, the under heat modifier, and the over heat modifier.