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Transmission Stuck In Park


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Ok, so a while ago my friend spilled a soda in the center console of my '92 sc400. At first i noticed sometimes the car didnt like to come out of park but it still would. Then, i noticed i had to push the shift-lock override button to get it out, then eventually that didnt even work. (the button on the shifter then ended up breaking in the process)

So, i took it to my mechanic, who is a huge toyota/lexus guy, and he replaced the button on the shifter and the tranny seemed to work fine for him. But i cant seem to get it out of park. I told him what happened, and (its been a while) i think he said it could have fried a selenoid(spelling?) on the tranny and he originally was going to replace that, but of course, when the mechanic had the car everything worked fine...

So, does anybody know what this could possibly be? If it is a selenoid of some sort or something, then could you guys give me a price range it would cost to fix it. Preferably just for the part, if its not too hard of a fix i plan on doing it myself. The car had sat for a while because after that happened i parked it and i bought an audi (BIGGEST PIECE OF CRAP!!!!) and i am currently replacing a turbo on it. My dad wants me to sell it so i can take over payments on his '05 jetta TDI so he can buy a new one, but i DO NOT want another VW product to deal with. Too many problems.

The Lexus was my first car (besides a '65 buick and an '83 chevy truck) and it has always been great. And another question i have quick... The car has 164,000 miles on it. Do you guys think as long as i keep maintaning it well that it will last a long time yet, or do you think it would be safer (unfortunately) to go with a jetta that has 50,000 miles? I just want to make sure this car will last me a while if i do decide to keep it. I love the looks and performance of these cars and hate to see it go, but i need to make sure it will last me a good long time yet.

Jason (oh, and i'm new to the forum, so hello everyone!)

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I'd go with the Lexus, 200,000 miles is not uncommon and there are more than a few of them working on 300,000

As far as the shifter problem its not complicated to disassemble the center console, I dont know a whole lot about the shifter mechanism but I do know there some tie in between the brake pedal needing to be depressed before the shifter will move, maybe the manual will help

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...showtopic=52424

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It could be that your solenoid is simply "stuck" in place with the soda residue.

If you take off the shifter cover plate you should be be able to access this easily and find the problem.

I'll bet that if you listen really close you can hear the solenoid clicking when you press the brake pedal.

Put your ear next to the shifter while pressing the pedal with your hand.

If you hear the click, clean out the soda.

If you don't, then you may have more of an issue.

Tom

By the way, my '97 SC300 turned 287,000 miles on the way home from work tonight. It is my everyday driver and I even took it on vacation this past summer (1,700 mile round trip).

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Thanks a lot for the help guys! I have an appointment with my mechanic on wednesday to get it fixed, but if i can fix it before that by just cleaning off the soda i'd be very happy and could save some $$$. :D

Would that be the same noise that i hear when i press the brake pedal anytime when the car is off? I always heard a faint click when the car was off when i pressed the break, i always assumed it was the sound of whatever turned the brake lights on. (not the sound of the actual lights, lol, but whatever switch controls it)

Thanks!

Jason

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I just checked out that article on clublexus.com... well the first picture where he's pulling the shifter off, it says "must not be in park" and thats my problem. I can't get it out of park. Anyone know how to get that cover off with it in park???

Jason

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I just checked out that article on clublexus.com... well the first picture where he's pulling the shifter off, it says "must not be in park" and thats my problem. I can't get it out of park. Anyone know how to get that cover off with it in park???

Jason

On your shifter panel, there is a small rectangler cap(plastic) just pry that up and push something down. You can now shift.

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Well, the car is on its way to the shop. I managed to get the car out of park. I had to push the shift-lock override button down real hard until it finally came out of park. Usually pressing that doesnt even help. So i have no clue what the problem is, hopefully my mechanic figures it out.

Thanks for you help guys.

Jason

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