1999 Buick Century Dash Board Code

LUSTYKID

MEMBER
1999 BUICK CENTURY
6 CYL
FWD
AUTOMATIC
82,000 MILES

When ever I put the shift lever on 1 or 2 from the park position a light on dashboard comes on that says I think is TRA OFF. If I put it on drive it does not happen.

The other issue is that the shift from Park to Drive is very rough like if the cable is stuck or possibly rusted inside, making the ship jerky and hard to move through the speeds when getting in gear.

What I don't know is what does this light mean.

updated 1/20/10
The trany shifts find, the lever is the thing that is hard to move a bit. Also this happened after the engine was changed in the car. I have checked the lever, is straight, however there is some kind of plug near this leaver, appears to be oily, probably dirt. Not sure is that the neutral safety switch.

Will check this out as soon as the weather permits. Maybe I should disconnect the trans cable and see if it is still hard to pull, that would indicate is most likely the cable. Advise.

2 Replies

ERNEST CLARK

MECHANIC
1,730 POSTS

The light means the traction control is off.

As for your gear lever being hard to place in drive, it is possible the shift lever on your transmission is rusty, loose or bent.

As for any drivability problems, like hard shifting, that could be a number of things, including your transmission is ready to fail. Your only options are to take it to a mechanic who can test drive it. (Which is of course impossible for me to do)

There's also an underlying cause why your traction control system would turn itself off. You'll have to have that checked out as well.

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Monday, January 18th, 2010 AT 8:38 AM

ERNEST CLARK

MECHANIC
1,730 POSTS

Since the lever only became hard to shift after an engine swap, I suspect they bent one of the rods/pawl/mounting points. Even if the rod appears straight, it could be binding against something as it travels through its normal range of motion.

Your neutral safety switch wouldn't have anything to do with the physical movement of your gear shift lever. And if you car starts in both the "Park" and "Neutral" positions, then you know the switch is operating correctly.

Also check the shift lever at the steering wheel. There could be an accumalation of dirt in there as well.

I'm not sure how else I can help you without actually seeing your linkages. Even then, I'd need a "Known-good" linkage to compare it with. I hope I've been of some help.

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Thursday, January 21st, 2010 AT 7:52 AM