96 Explorer will not go into Park and shifter seems looser

[BillRod]

Hi All

My son's 96 Explorer will not go into Park.
Also the shifter seems to be looser than it was.
Is there an adjustment on the Trans?
I'm trying to diagnose from out of town so don't have any of my manuals with me.
Any advise is appreciated.
Thanks
Bill.

 

[adsm08]

No adjustment on the trans.

Is it that Park is not engaging and it can actually roll away, or is it that the needle isn't pointing at P?

The shifter cable can stretch, as can the indicator needle. Both of those are adjustable I believe.

 

[BillRod]

It is not engaging in park so it will roll away. Also can't get the key out.

 

[mplummer08]

I've seen the shift cable pop off of the shift lever at the trans. If that happens the Trans stays in whatever gear it was in when it popped off.

Sent from my SPH-L720T using Tapatalk

 

[BillRod]

It will go back and forth between Drive and Reverse and down to the lower gears.
Just not into park.

 

[adsm08]

Block the front wheels, jack up the rear, and crawl under. Pop the cable off the manual selector arm and try popping it into park that way. If it won't go try it while spinning the rear wheels by hand. Sometimes things just don't line up right and won't go into park.

If you can get it in by hand look into an issue with the cable and shifter.

 

[AzLizard]

I've seen the shift cable pop off of the shift lever at the trans. If that happens the Trans stays in whatever gear it was in when it popped off.

Sent from my SPH-L720T using Tapatalk

Mine was trying to do this.
Turned out the retainer clip was falling out at the bracket.

 

[pjtoledo]

shifter is located on the steering column? check for worn/broken bushings on the steering column. that allows the shifter arm/shaft to move around so it can't pull the shifter cable properly.

 

[Shran]

The cable is adjustable. I have run into this several times on Rangers in the past - there's a bracket on the trans that holds the cable, and the adjustment can be done there. Just took a flat screwdriver IIRC.

Could also be that the shifter bracket on the steering column is loose - might just be able to tighten the bolts that hold it on and fix the problem that way.

 

[BillRod]

Found one of the two Torx screws on the linkage had fallen out.
Luckily was able to put the screw back in without dropping the steering column.
Just had to get my head under the dash by the brake pedal to see the end of the linkage.