Shift problem....just happened!!!!

[dangerous]

Here's a funny one.....

I was at the post office, put the car in reverse and backed out of the parking space. Shifted out of reverse.... and the gear shift went limp....you know just flopped around. My guess was a failure in a connection between the shift lever and the linkage that connects back to the trans. I could feel around with the shift lever and managed to push the linkage into gear and pull back into the parking space before stalling. But of course I couldn't pull it out of gear so it appears that I'm stuck in 4th gear. So I removed the wheel, locked up the car and started looking for a frosty beverage. Tucson is HOT today....like 102F!!! Caught the bus home so I could grab my tools and check the repair manual to find out how the stuff connects. I thought I'd check the past posts here because I'm sure somebody has incurred this before.

SOoooooo Just in case anybody happens to be online and knows how how to reconnect the linkage so I can bring my baby home....please feel free to reply.

I'm sure it's a pretty simple fix so I'm not too worried.

Thanks all

Eddie

P.S. Brando's right....the bus sucks.....

[shocker1322]

There are two bolts that hold a bracket onto the power tube. if those come loose, then you would not be able to shift. You have to pull a few interior peices out, but not that hard of a job. I hope it is that simple, Good luck.

[SoCal Driver]

There is a bolt in the crossover linkage on top of the trans. The nut usually comes off letting the linkage come loose. The bolt may still be there. Look for it above the rear axle on the drivers side.

Another place to look is under the shifter boot. The pin on the shift lever comes out of the linkage. You may be luck and find the clip and washer that goes over the end laying down against the tunnel.

[dangerous]

thanks!!!

It turned out to be the pin on the shift lever that SoCal Driver mentioned. I saw the groove in the lever and figured it must be a pin or clip of some type but didn't find it. I didn't find the washer either. I managed to keep the connection together long enough to drive it home. I think I will probably have to find a replacement though....

The problem is I don't really know what the pin/clip looks like...is it like a typical pin that pushes through and splits at the end so you can wrap it around?

Thanks,
Eddie

[Brando]

grats on the (soon to be) fix. Could a cotter pin be used?

[dangerous]

Brando

I'm not sure but that's kinda the direction I'm leaning toward. I'll do some experimenting tomorrow and let you all know how it turns out.

[SoCal Driver]

Check this diagram.

The clip is item 16. Has a thrust washer item 15. If the pin is worn (which they usually are) I would use a couple more of the washers to take up the slack. In some cases you can replace the pin with a 3/8" bolt, jam nut and washers assembly. Otherwise replace the shift lever. You might have to put a bushing in the end of the long linkage.

The other points to look at are items 28. These are special stepped or shouldered bolts. Also bolt item 19 can come loose. This is supposed to be safety wired. Don't over tighten it or it will break.



You may want to download all of these images and print them out.

[dangerous]

nice Diagram! Thanks SoCal Driver. That helps a lot. The pin's a little worn but I think it'l work fine once I replace the clip & washer. I'll look for a replacement today now that I have a better idea of what it looks like.

thanks again

[SoCal Driver]

Bet if you poked around in the tunnel area with a magnet you could find the old clip.