so i broke a shifter cable on my GTA.
i was just currious if anyone knew how the hell it happened? also, is this common? ive never heard of it before, it was a CLEAN cut, no fraying or anything of the sort, just thought it was alittle out of the ordinary.

and where can i find a replacement? any idea on how much?

 

I just had something similar happen to my 84 t/a. pulled in the driveway and went to put it in park. gearshift will go through the clicks and detents but it is in drive. no park or reverse. you can start it and then it immediately goes into drive. Cable broken or maybe linkage? any help for me or above would be appreciated

 

sounds exactly like what happened to me, is your shifter floppy at all?
i had a broken shifter cable, it only takes a few hours to fix, and its a 30 dollar part.
jack up your car and take a look at the linkage, have someone move the shifter through the gears. if its broken, youll know it.

 

I busted mine last year bagging on the car downtown, ended up cruising back home in first gear

I didnt actually bust the cable, but the whole ball and socket contraption on the end of it flew apart

cable was something like $120ca from GM....

 

Mine broke in November on one of the first cold days. It sucked I could only get reverse. So I ended up pushing it to the closest shop, and let them fix it. It did the same thing though it was snapped clean in half, and I could just fling the shifter around in the console. The guy at the shop said he never seen one snap so perfect.

 

same thing happened to me!
the cable snapped perfectly. no fraying or anything, clean cut.

 

Do yourself a favor if it's not too late - get a shifter cable from GM!!!! I've been through 3 cables from Autozone/Advance - they aren't worth a flip. Spend the extra - it's a PITA and you don't want it happening again.

 

really?
i did buy an autozone cable actually.
how much are the GM ones, and where do i get it?
also about how long did your autozone cables last?

 

Autozone cable lasted about 60 days. GM cable at dealer - I think I paid $57 for mine - but you can compare the two in hand and see the difference - the Autozone cables break at the plastic seam on the tranny end - the GM cables are "welded" with plastic around the seam so as to not seperate. Well worth the extra in my book after having gone through 2 AZ cables in 3 months.

 

I just replaced my shifter cable about a month ago. $71 from GM. I know cables get old and eventually fray but, I didn't expect it go bad either.

Jay

 

wow, 60 days?
i may just save myself the trouble and install a GM cable now.

 

Yep - $71 sounds about right. I got an employee discount at my dealer as I have some business dealings with the owner. It's WELL WORTH the extra price!