I bought a 2003 tribute dx last april and have had an idle speed issue. If I am driving and put it neutral while rolling, the engine will rev at 2000 or 3000 rpm. Sometimes it accelerates up to those rpms and a few times as high as 5500 rpm. If I press and hold the clutch in, it will eventually go down to its normal idle speed. If I stop the vehicle, it will also go to a normal idle speed, but only if I am completely stopped.
I took it to a dealership and they replaced the maf, throttle body, vaccuum solenoid, pcv valve, vaccuum hoses, throttle cable and serviced the clutch to no avail. They then told me that its the way i drive (********) and the car is supposed to do that.
I gave up on them and went to the haynes manual. I found that the tribute has two switches on the clutch. The clutch position sensor (upper sensor) is working properly but when it idles high and I press the clutch to where the cps is disengaged , the engine returns to a normal idle around 1000 rpm. Note: with the cps, the button pressed (clutch up) the switch gives an open condition; with the button not pressed (clutch pushed in) the cps switch gives a shorted condition.
So, I took the switch apart and effectively made it into a jumper. This fixed the idle issue. The tribute seems to run great now!
Here is my pressing question:
The haynes manual basically states that the cpp switch signal, along with other inputs, is used by the pcm to calculate and adjust the air/fuel ratio. After looking at the schematics for cruise control system, which mine does not have, the cpp signal is used to disengage the cruise control. Which is it, or does it do both? So, is it better for me to let the engine idle wildly out of control, putting wear on the engine and ruining my fuel economy? Or, do I leave my fix in place and possibly compromise my fuel/air ratio? Is my fix going to damage the engine?