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My 2002 E350 Club Wagon is stuck in park. The shifter has always been vague compared to my 1996 E250 it replaced, but I learned to live with it. Wife drove it, parked it on the street (ugh) and I went to drive it a few days ago and couldn't get it to shift out of park. Van starts fine, just won't shift out of park. Read through the forum, watched some YouTubes, and here's what I've done:
1) Replaced the shift column bushings. From everything I read and watched, I thought that was going to be the cure. But the old bushings weren't bad, and the new bushings didn't make any difference.
2) Tested the solenoid connection for proper power - all good there. Brake lights work, fuses okay. Removed the solenoid anyway, and it reacts to power/no power/brake the way it is supposed to. Even with the solenoid removed, I still can't shift out of park.
3) Checked the two Torx bolts on the cable attachment that was mentioned in a few threads. They were tight.
At this point, I would think it's either the gear shift selector, the shift shaft, or the shift cable.
Based on your testing, it appears there is a problem with the mechanism in the column. When you pull the shift ever towards yourself a metal tab is supposed to be pulled down allowing the column to rotate (assuming the shift interlock solenoid is working). This same tab locks the column in each gear until you pull the lever again.
I don't know the exact assembly but I'm sure I saw a YouTube explaining it. I would simply harvest the parts from a junkyard.
If the cable is stuck you can disconnect it at the transmission.to verify There is a plastic retainer that locks the cable to the transmission shift lever. It's the yellow piece. Note the position and slide it up to release. You should be able to shift the tranny by hand.
Is the van parked on a steep incline and putting pressure on park mechanism? Might try relieve pressure by pulling vehicle backward and see if the shifter might release. I broke a parking mechanism when car was frozen to the ground way back in 1978. Have you tried getting access to shift arm at transmission and try shifting it manually from park position? If you attempt this make sure e-brake works good and choke wheels to be safe or take to a transmission shop for diagnosis. Thats all I have for you. Good luck.
Thanks fellas. Crawling under to disconnect the shifter cable is my next step. I was putting that off as I'm confident that the 22 year old plastic clip will disintegrate when I touch it, leading to one more thing to repair.
Question: Since I was in there, I just removed the entire interlock solenoid to take that out of the equation for testing. Shifter should move freely without that, whether the ignition is on or off, correct? Just wanting to make sure my brain is working properly.
Also, the van is parked on a slight incline. It doesn't feel like a stuck parking pawl, but I'll try to rock the van forward just to eliminate that from the list. Thanks!
Question: Since I was in there, I just removed the entire interlock solenoid to take that out of the equation for testing. Shifter should move freely without that, whether the ignition is on or off, correct? Just wanting to make sure my brain is working properly.
Yes, the absence of the shift lock solenoid will allow shifting out of park whenever the ignition is turned on. The solenoid works (if my memory is accurate) by energizing when the key is ON. This flips the solenoid into a locking cutout in the shift mechanism. Pressing the brake pedal turns the solenoid off and the shift lever can be moved. Once the gear lever is out of PARK the solenoid state does not matter. Without the key on you can't shift because the column is locked.
Brake must be applied, hint, is your brake lights functioning, fuse blown, my trailer light wiring insulation all chipped off causing a massive short, blowing fuses locking my van in park, not even the shops found why, I found it when I looked at my trailer hitch, never seen it happen before.
Wanted to pop back for an recap/update. Working from the top of the van down I replaced the shaft bushings, which did nothing. I removed the starter interlock solenoid, still stuck in park. I popped the shifter cable off under the dash and couldn't move the cable. I popped the cable off the transmission and the cable moved fine. Decided to replace the shift range/neutral safety switch on the transmission, and that was the culprit. Van started and shifted properly.
Only issue I'm having now is I have to "lift" (move the left) the shift lever to start the van and to remove the key. I've tried a multitude of adjustments with the cable on the transmission, but can't seem to find the sweet spot. There's still a *lot* of slop in the shift lever, even compared (from memory) to my 1996 E250, and certainly to any of our other vehicles. At this point, it would seem like the only parts left to replace would be the shift lever bushing (cheap and easy) and the entire shift shaft assembly (not terribly expensive, but not terribly easy).
Not clear what "screw" you're referring to? Are you talking about the two Torx screws that hold the Control Arm to the Shift Lever Shaft? Those are tight. The bushings are new, and the clamps are tight.
Ours has play between the shift handle and the rod parallel to the steering column. There’s a plastic wedge by the pin that holds the handle. Dorman makes replacements but I read the genuine Ford part lasts longer.
I don’t see it in your diagram. Maybe a different year or model.
Yep, that's the shift lever bushing - the "easy" part of the fix I described above. That's the next step - I'll let you know how it goes!
I bought that bushing for mine, didn't need it, had to replace my trailer towing harness, all the wiring insulation fell off letting all 4 wires contact each other, must have been some good plastic used on them.
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