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Accelerator

jtre

Well-Known Member
Joined
June 18, 2016
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Year, Model & Trim Level
1997 Mercury Mountaineer
So my truck has been sitting again while i was away at school...runs ok except for an airbag light. But one issue i noticed is my accelerator pedal is very sloppy (a good 1/2" of slack in it, idles fine but i cant get it to rev to more than 4000 rpm when pushing hard on the pedal)...is there any way to adjust it? Or is it just stretched and in need of replacing? Havent checked how much the throttle body is opening yet, but im assuming not much.
 



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Don't believe the 50 HP claim, but you will restore lost power IF you are not hitting WOT. Check the throttle plate with the pedal to the floor BEFORE doing this modification, otherwise the cable or linkage could break..

50 Horsepower For 5 Cents............
 












Also check the pedal bracket mounting to the firewall. The bracket is sheet metal, spot welded to the firewall, and those three spot welds can crack, will eventually IMO. I had it finally happen in my recent 98 Limited. I heard a creaking when letting off the gas for a week, and imagined that noise could be the pedal mount. I finally checked it, sure enough, from the front the welds were cracking and sharp. Be careful how you touch those, and some trucks have a sound deadening layer on the firewall. My 99 had that, and I had corrected the issue in 2006 when I reconstructed that truck.

To upgrade that, you drill through the top and bottom part of the pedal bracket mount(almost straight through those spot welds). Just center the holes so a wide washer bolt and nut can fit in the bracket space.

If it is the pedal mount, it will eventually tear the firewall badly, and be much harder to repair.
 






wasnt the pedal mount...worked like a charm, my throttle plate when floored was open maybe 20%, now i have WOT
 






Very good. We all have some unused zip ties, that's a good use for them.
 






Very good. We all have some unused zip ties, that's a good use for them.
just out of curiosity, there is no chance that this kind of mod will lead to the pedal/throttle plate sticking open right? I figure a failure in the spring at the TB end would cause that kind of failure, but im not sure.
 






The mod is to restore the original cable length, the throttle should still function from closed to WOT. Do check it when you make the change, to be sure the throttle fully closes too. I think it would be quickly obvious if the TB was open at idle, the rpm's would be too high for sure.
 






Very unlikely zip ties on the pedal cable end would cause binding or sticking, although CLEANING the throttle body should be considered preventative maintenance. Use specific spray like CRC throttle body cleaner, not carburetor cleaner that is much harsher. Be especially thorough where the throttle butterfly plate contacts the throttle body bore where carbon and "coke" buildup is most prevalent. If it was dirty you will be amazed with the smoother idle and how much better the engine runs. GL
 






Very unlikely zip ties on the pedal cable end would cause binding or sticking, although CLEANING the throttle body should be considered preventative maintenance. Use specific spray like CRC throttle body cleaner, not carburetor cleaner that is much harsher. Be especially thorough where the throttle butterfly plate contacts the throttle body bore where carbon and "coke" buildup is most prevalent. If it was dirty you will be amazed with the smoother idle and how much better the engine runs. GL
yes that TB cleaner did great when i did that. night and day because before i did it, my TB was filthy
 






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