1991 Ford Probe gear shift stuck

JSCOTT96

MEMBER
1991 FORD PROBE

1991 Ford Probe w/ 173000 miles. Went to leave this morning and couldn't disengage the gear shift from PARK down to REVERSE to leave. I've had somewhat similar problems in the past, usually resolved by fiddling with the piece of plastic at the base of the gear shift, just to the right of it. Tried that w/ no success, but while my wife pressed on the brake, turned the steering wheel, and tried to shift, I pushed up and down, and forward and backwards, on the back of the car and was able to get it disengaged. Of course when I got to work I impulsively put it into PARK, and now its stuck there again, this time not budging despite my "shaking" efforts.

Any thoughts? The loose piece of plastic at the base of the gear shift now appears even more dislodged and I can't figure out what this thing does and if its getting in the way of changing gears.

Would love to avoid a trip to the mechanic, but thanks in advance for any help.?

1 Reply

GODBEAR839

MECHANIC
77 POSTS

Tear the whole console out not sure if your year/model has it but most have a keyed lock to stop it from being shifted I be this part is broken and has fallen over to the locked position the best thing is to remove the whole console. Do it slow and bring a jar for all the screws take your time and all you really need is a pair of needle nose pliers and one short and one very long phillips drivers to open the console up. The pliers are for any dropped screws.