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'99 shifter issue

john112deere

john112deere

caffeine junkie
Staff member
10,807
405
central Vermont
My sister has a '99 Explorer- 4.0 V6, 4wd, auto trans.

She says that twice in the last year (today, most recently) she's backed up out of a parking space/driveway and then tried to shift to drive, but the gearshift won't go past neutral.

Putting it up into Park and trying again won't do it, but Park-shutdown-restart and it's back to normal.



Any thoughts? Shifter cable binding? Some sort of interlock?
 
Blue Goose

Blue Goose

16,116
781
Fenton, Missouri
Is that a 'floor' shifter?
 
john112deere

john112deere

caffeine junkie
Staff member
10,807
405
central Vermont
No- column.

If memory serves (I don't drive her car much) it's always felt a little on the "stiff" end of the spectrum, but not to where I'd have thought there was a problem.

Car's only got 75k on it, but the years haven't been kind to it...
 
Blue Goose

Blue Goose

16,116
781
Fenton, Missouri
If it would have been a floor shifter, I was going to give you my educated guess as to what the problem might be.... It's happened to Bonnie's Mustang.

The plastic that follows the shift lever forward and back keeping the slot closed up broke and started jamming/restricting the lever as you would try to shift from drive to park or wherever you'd want to move it.....You could eventually get it by fiddling with it..... The thing was, you couldn't readily see that it was broken......
 
blacksnapon

blacksnapon

Moderator
Staff member
9,461
301
waynesville,mo.
Lots of stuff to check. Brake shift interlock possibly binding. "Gears" at the end of the keyswitch not engaging right. Bushings and/or clips on the shift cable worn or broken. Shift indicator (just showing its not in gear).
 
john112deere

john112deere

caffeine junkie
Staff member
10,807
405
central Vermont
OK- that's sounding a little more involved than I want to do over the phone with her...


Thanks!
 

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