Why is it that my car idles high in park and seems to drop when in gear?

You need to check the basic idle rpm and possibly timing of your vehicle. Idle rpm is affected also by such things as the Idle Air Control (IAC) Valve and the ECM. The ECM controls current to the IAC Valve to maintain correct idle speed, when the engine is cold, the A/C compressor is on, the transmission is in gear (A/T only) or the alternator is charging.

See if the link below helps:

https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/cars-t...tml#post219948

Its an 83. No ecu, ecm or computer. Sorry, I should have explained better.