I have a 1987 trans am. Yesterday i was cleaning my engine and today when i go outside to leave i started to notice the problems. I have a automatic car. I put it in drive then overdrive to see. the car will not shift out of first gear and i dont know why. could i of bumped something while cleaning it that will cause this?

Thanks

 

It wont shift out of first at all? Or it takes a while to do it? (like up to 15-20mph)

I would check the detent cable first. It seems a bit far-fetched, but you may have bumped it while cleaning it up and knocked it way out of adjustment. That could cause it not to shift right.

Thatd be my first check of things. If you arent sure how to adjust it, look it up in your haynes/chiltons manual (hopefully you have one, theyre cheap and excellent to have, mine has paid for itself 100x over! ) or on this site. It varies depending on your engine.