Hi Revs

I have a 2002 Ford Escort-

Problem 1:
On starting the vehicle the revs are normal. Once I depress the accelerator the rev's get very high and will not normalize. Tee only way to "reset" the idling speed is to turn off the engine and restart, however depressing the pedal the same thing happens again. The IAC was replaced with the same result. Any ideas?

Problem 2:
The interior light flickers with the engine idling (hi or low rpm). If the battery terminals are disconnected the flicker of the light stops. Can this be a grounding problem somewhere or a bad alternator? Thanks in advance!

It sounds like you either have a bad throttle position sensor or a vacuum leak. Check for a vacuum leak first and then if you don't find one the TPS is probably bad and will need replaced. Since the problem occurs after you hit the gas this sounds like the problem.

As for the flickering check all grounds to make sure they are good and all connections especially at the starter and the alternator. If everything is tight you probably have a bad spot in the alternator. It is nothing to worry about unless the alternator totally fails.