ok people os this is my first post. i'm matt by the way but everyone calls me spike. ok so here is my problem i have a 700r4 and the transmission seems to be shifting right. the shifter however doesn't put my car in park. its as if there is something wrong in the shifter lever selector. i replaced the cable and it snapped when i put it into park. i had a mechanic do some work to my engine and now all of a sudden it doesn't work. i was just curious what it could be and what needs fixed here.
someone told me if i replaced the factory shifter with a ratchet one with a hella strong cable the problem would be solved. but there is something wrong that the factory one doesn't work now. thanks for your help guys

 

So you replaced the cable and it snapped, then you're wondering why it doesn't work?

You need to get under the car and see what's happening.

On the drivers side near the middle of the car you should see a cable that meets the tranny and you'll notice the tab it attaches to has different positions (PNR[D]D21). Carefully remove the cable from the tab and try to turn it by hand. It should take a bit extra work due to the GM design of having park twice the distance to push compared to the other positions. If it goes into part then your cable is misaligned/damaged/broken or your shifter isn't right. If you can't get it into park then you're tranny must have something wrong with it interally.

 

well i've done that already. i should have been more clear about that. it does go into park when i push it with my hand. i had a friend help me put another cable on but it broke again. i'm not sure how to adjust the cable.i didn't follow the haynes manual to do it. i just wonder if and what would be wrong with the shifter.
thanks for the reply. if you had anymore helpful hints that would be great. thanks bro

 

I wouldn't change to a ratchet shifter just becuase of this. I've heard alot of problems with aftermarket shifter cables. Also, if the cable has ever been kinked then odds are it will break again, atleast that's what I've noticed.

 

that what i have also heard about aftermarket shifters. i'm pretty sure the line wasn't kinked. i've talked to a lot of people that don't really seem to have an answer. of course these people have never owned a third gen much less an automatic. it almost has to be in the shifter or cable. but like i said i followed the haynes manual. although that doesn't mean a lot. is there something else that could go bad on the shifter itself?

thanks again for the posts.

 

what kind of shifter cable are you using? oem or aftermarket? ie parts' store crap.

 

I had a similar problem once. Take off the shifter plate so you can see the shifter assembly and check that the cable is being routed properly through the metal tab and then down through the tunnel. When I had my problem the plastic piece on the cable itself had somehow been lifted off the metal tab and it was floating around free, threw everything off and was not able to put the car in park. Did the check from under the car to determine if it was the shifter, then did as I described above and it fixed everything. Hope this helps!

 

1) Check cable routing for the proper way, should be smooth and rounded, no 90deg or kinks in it.

2) Set the shifter in "N" and the trans in "N" when reinstalling the cable and adjust it from there.

3) Go slowly and grab a semi knowledgeable car helper so one of u can work under the car to adjust it while the other carefully feels for the shifter detents up top.

later
Jeremy