How To Get To Shift Lock Solenoid ?

[jigmaster flash]

trying to get to the shift lock solenoid under the shift console on my 98 - managed to remove wood trim,shift knob, shift plate etc but the shifting mechanism seems to be encased in a thick plastic unit.....

can anyone advise how I get into this to access the solenoid? Its got a LOT of screws and bolts and I don't want to loosen the wrong ones...

[auctionjunky]

i'm trying to test the same thing. it's held on by two small gold screws that you can see over in the upper right (when looking down from the driver's seat)... when you pull it out though, there's a spring and a metal rod that'll fall off, the end of the rod hooks into a lever, you'll see. i fished the metal rod out through the opening up top with a thin telescopic magnet, i grapped the metal rod with one of those funky tools with a lever that looks like an intake valve at the end and a claw at the other end, the one you use to retrieve screws. now i'm trying to figure out how to remove the connecter the solenoid is attached to in order to test it correctly, which brings me to your post. whatever you do, don't remove the 4 gold bolts on top of the shifter, some idiot decided to put 4 nuts on the opposite side of the plastic cover, they fall off, now you have to remove the entire console and drop the dash plus cover beneath the steering wheel, then remove the bottom plastic portion of the shifter housing, ask me how i know.

nobody even touches this topic. i did find this link. .

http://bgbonline.celicatech.com/94_6gmanual/shift%20lock%20system.pdf

[Exhaustgases]

Yeah some of the most difficult things to do on these and any car for that matter is interior stuff. It is so easy to break something and or goof it up.

[auctionjunky]

i removed my solenoid, had to unbolt the gated shifter housing by removing the four bolts on the very bottom (DO NOT REMOVE 4 BOLTS ON TOP.. ONLY REMOVE GATED HOUSING BY REMOVING 4 BOLTS ON THE BOTTOM)... trust me. My solenoid has 33.33 ohms of resistance when the max is 28 ohms, but when i run 12v to it, the cylinder inside the solenoid retracts as is should.

I'm trying to decide if it's a complete waste of time and money to buy a new solenoid (or salvaged one) because of the 5.33 ohms difference, since the solenoid does work with 12v applied. I need some advice from you experienced electronics techs.