No Park, messed up tranny

[91explorer1009]

I recently changed my t-stat in my 91 sport 4.0. I had just started it up, and had it in park. I wanted to warm it up a bit so I reved the engine a few times. All of a sudden the car jumped out of park and started to go foward, while still in park. I quickly shut it off, i restarted it and put it in drive and drove home about 5 miles. I checked all the gears while on level ground, and they all worked fine and engaged fine, reverse, nuetral, overdrive, drive etc. When I pulled in my driveway I went to put it in Park, and I rolled backwards. I found out that the park gear was not engaging. The car would just float as if in nuetral. I had to use the e brake to keep me on the driveway. Please help, should it have jumped out of park just because I was touching the gas a bit. Anyone had this happen to them before. Thanks, (in a rage) Sam :fire:

 

[Glacier991]

I am thinking a linkage problem. The parking pawl engages the governor body which is splined onti the output shaft. Anytime the shift level is in park, the parking pawl is allowed to "spring" into the governor body, and engages one of the matching "slots". Are you getting a racheting sound as it moves? If so, you may have a bad or weak spring or the pawl itself may have gotten damaged so it won't stay in one of those "slots". Otherwise the shifter should, in park, pull out enough to allow it to engage... unless of course, something happened to the linkage. The good news is that this is something that, if necessary, can be fixed without removing the trannie. Start my checking out the linkage, pull the pan also and check inside....

If you needed to replace something the pawl is accessible by removing the T case and extension housing, and the rest is accessible from within the pan and outside.

There are a lot of pics in the "My A4LD Rebuild Diary" near the end of part 3 section 2. ALso Brain has a "Frantentranny" thread in Under the Hood that also has good pictures...

 

[91explorer1009]

so you dont think that my transmission is shot, or that i would need a new one? anyone else, no one else has ever had a problem like this before?? the trannie shifts fine when im driving and also engages fine in all the other gears.???any one with knowledge please help!?!

 

[Glacier991]

No your tranny is not shot. Did you even look at the posts with pictures I suggested? There is a place to start resolving this problem. No "magic bullets". Parking pawl is purely a mechanical interconnect... look at the pics. do some work. You'll get it. Lots of smart folks on here, but this one is pretty easy... you have to diagnose why the pawl is not going into the governor body. It's not thermostats, PCM's, wiring, fluid, position of the moon and stars... it is mechanical interconnect. GO. Read ...Grasshopper. Knowledge is power.

 

[91explorer1009]

Sorry glacier, first off I thought you were just guessing so i wanted another opinion or 2. Secondly I have a fear of my tranny going since every one on these boards always constantly all the time talks about the trannys going or needing to be rebuilt. I am a weekend mechanic, so tranny is out of the question for fixing, for me anyway. But thanks a lot, I was just so worried that the park not engaging was definatly something like, ....yeah sounds like you broke your transmission, good going. So sorry to undermind you, i just (a) needed reassurance, and (b) didnt know if you were just throwing out there what the problem, might be. Thanks a lot again, also, if I took it to a shop, how much could this be fixed for. i mean how much for the part and is it a detailed really long thing that would rack up labor??? or do you think i could do this myself??? one more thing, can i have the link for your thread to the tranny thing, I dont think you gave it to me, thanks a ton glacier, I was really worried, and still am just a little bit. Thanks, Sam

 

[Glacier991]

Sam... stop worrying. This problem is not "my trannie is dying" kinda problem. this is a "why isn't the parking pawl engaging" problem. I am Reasonably sure it is linkage related somehow. Do me a favor. Stop thinking of an automatic transmission as some magical thing only Gods can understand. It's not. YOUR part of this problem is simple.... but it will require YOU do some some homework. If yer not up to it, take it to a shop. If you have more time than money do the homework.... YOU can fix this. Now the link I am about to post for you is 5 part thread disassembly and reassembly of this transmission and it is long. The stuff you are interested in is at the end of part 3, 2nd half.... but, do yourself a favor, pull up a chair and read it all, follow the links.... learn.

Here's a link... but a *SEARCH* would have gotten it for you too. Hint from an old fart....Nothing worth having is simply given to you in life.....

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=98027

and part 3 second half (I'd read it all if I were you)...

http://www.explorerforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=113354

I spent a lot of time and effort to make sure the info was there for those who needed it. It may be lacking in some areas and some respects, but I have done my best. I hope you might avail yourself of it.

To repeat, this is something YOU can track down and fix... but if it is too daunting, a shop can do it easily for you.