My car: 2003 PT, manual trans, 214000 miles.
Lately, it has been more difficult to shift into reverse. Yesterday, it was impossible. Took car to reputable transmission shop in afternoon. This morning, I was back on the road with gear shifting that felt like new, including reverse.
The problem: Shift-cable bushings were worn out. Apparently, there are two shift cables going from the gear shift to the trans. At their ends are rings that fit over pins. The cables push/pull the pins, which are parts of the levers that change the gears. A donut-shaped bushing (or grommet) fits over each pin and within the ring to achieve a tight fit without slop. Typically, these are made of rubber or plastic. In my case, after 214,000 miles of shifting, these bushings wore out. The slop between the rings and the pins prevented my shifting into reverse gear. It also made shifting in general somewhat sloppy feeling.
Elsewhere on the net you can find these bushings. My trans guy wanted to get me back on the road, so he fashioned replacement bushings from tubing he had in his shop. The bill: $63.60.
Cliff Lesher, Winfield, PA
Lately, it has been more difficult to shift into reverse. Yesterday, it was impossible. Took car to reputable transmission shop in afternoon. This morning, I was back on the road with gear shifting that felt like new, including reverse.
The problem: Shift-cable bushings were worn out. Apparently, there are two shift cables going from the gear shift to the trans. At their ends are rings that fit over pins. The cables push/pull the pins, which are parts of the levers that change the gears. A donut-shaped bushing (or grommet) fits over each pin and within the ring to achieve a tight fit without slop. Typically, these are made of rubber or plastic. In my case, after 214,000 miles of shifting, these bushings wore out. The slop between the rings and the pins prevented my shifting into reverse gear. It also made shifting in general somewhat sloppy feeling.
Elsewhere on the net you can find these bushings. My trans guy wanted to get me back on the road, so he fashioned replacement bushings from tubing he had in his shop. The bill: $63.60.
Cliff Lesher, Winfield, PA
