Shift Lever Troubles - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

nroden · 12-11-2003, 04:49 PM

This morning was a cold morning with snow from the previous day on the ground.. bad enough already. Then when I put my truck into Reverse something broke. Now my lever is shift lever is real loose and I can only go between drive and neutral. No way to pull back to put it in park or reverse. What happened and how do I fix it???
It is a TH350 automatic.

SWEET7T · 12-11-2003, 06:02 PM

DId the little pin that holds the shifter on the coller on the steering column work its way out?! Mine works itself every once in a while, I just tap it back in. Hopefully that will solve it

pickupman · 12-11-2003, 06:41 PM

It sounds like the little ball and pin made onto the gear lever may have broken. I have had that happen before. Pull your lever out and take a look at the end.
Bill

lukecp · 12-11-2003, 06:42 PM

I had a similiar problem once. I was going up my stepdad's driveway (if you call it that, more of a boulder-strewn trail

) and i must have bottomed out. Where the shift linkage goes into the transmission, i broke off part of the little C-shaped connector on the tranny side. So the shift linkage slid back off of it and i couldn't shift.

I drilled a hole on the shift linkage pivot point (directly across from where it goes into the tranny), and installed a washer and a nail there so the shift linkage couldn't back off from the tranny...has worked great for like a year so far.

I didn't do a great job of explaining it, just crawl underneat there and you will see what i mean.
Good luck Nick!

sactoC10 · 12-11-2003, 06:51 PM

I thought my lever was never going to EVER get back into place when it was hard shifting for a while, then quit working altogether. I thought I was low on tranny fluid at first, then I realized it was a mechanical matter in the column. Turned out that the sliding mechanism that the lever goes into simply needed to be lubed...nothing else. It was dried out at stuck.

So my point is this...it may be something very simple, just get close in there and look around. Start with the pin, maybe the lever, something in the column...maybe underneath. With enough persistence, you'll find it!

nroden · 12-11-2003, 09:59 PM

Looks like pickupman hit it right.

12-11-2003, 04:49 PM	#1
nroden Registered User Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Springfield, MO Posts: 1,098	Shift Lever Troubles This morning was a cold morning with snow from the previous day on the ground.. bad enough already. Then when I put my truck into Reverse something broke. Now my lever is shift lever is real loose and I can only go between drive and neutral. No way to pull back to put it in park or reverse. What happened and how do I fix it??? It is a TH350 automatic. __________________ Nick Rodenberg 72 Cheyenne 10 V8 350/TH350 white/ochre/white/ochre, ochre/saddle interior Retired and in the dry... still runs. I now drive Red '01 Ford Focus... better MPG!!!

12-11-2003, 06:02 PM	#2
SWEET7T Try spinnin 4 rear tars Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Salt Lake City, Utah Posts: 757	DId the little pin that holds the shifter on the coller on the steering column work its way out?! Mine works itself every once in a while, I just tap it back in. Hopefully that will solve it __________________ SWEET7T 1970 C10, 2wd, LB, 307/TH350/3.08. PS, PB

12-11-2003, 06:41 PM	#3
pickupman Registered User Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Greeneville, TN Posts: 3,095	It sounds like the little ball and pin made onto the gear lever may have broken. I have had that happen before. Pull your lever out and take a look at the end. Bill __________________ atheystruck@comcast.net 67 1/2 ton 4wd custom cab 72 1/2 ton 4wd super cheyenne 71 1/2 BB super cheyenne shortbed

12-11-2003, 06:42 PM	#4
lukecp Formerly yellow72custom Join Date: May 2001 Location: Austin, TX Posts: 7,531	I had a similiar problem once. I was going up my stepdad's driveway (if you call it that, more of a boulder-strewn trail ) and i must have bottomed out. Where the shift linkage goes into the transmission, i broke off part of the little C-shaped connector on the tranny side. So the shift linkage slid back off of it and i couldn't shift. I drilled a hole on the shift linkage pivot point (directly across from where it goes into the tranny), and installed a washer and a nail there so the shift linkage couldn't back off from the tranny...has worked great for like a year so far. I didn't do a great job of explaining it, just crawl underneat there and you will see what i mean. Good luck Nick! __________________ '72 Chevy C10 Mild 350/TH350/3.07. Ochre/White. Old high school ride. '70 GMC C2500 '62 327 4bbl/SM465/4.56-geared Dana 60. White/White. Project or parts truck. '97 Saturn SL DD. 1.9/5-speed. 40+ highway mpg

12-11-2003, 09:59 PM	#6
nroden Registered User Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Springfield, MO Posts: 1,098	Looks like pickupman hit it right. __________________ Nick Rodenberg 72 Cheyenne 10 V8 350/TH350 white/ochre/white/ochre, ochre/saddle interior Retired and in the dry... still runs. I now drive Red '01 Ford Focus... better MPG!!!

12-11-2003, 06:51 PM	#5
sactoC10 71 DELUX Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Northern CA / Sac Posts: 1,056	I thought my lever was never going to EVER get back into place when it was hard shifting for a while, then quit working altogether. I thought I was low on tranny fluid at first, then I realized it was a mechanical matter in the column. Turned out that the sliding mechanism that the lever goes into simply needed to be lubed...nothing else. It was dried out at stuck. So my point is this...it may be something very simple, just get close in there and look around. Start with the pin, maybe the lever, something in the column...maybe underneath. With enough persistence, you'll find it!



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