Help! car won't shift out of park!!!

[camaro6]

Today, I was pulling into the parking lot here at school, and i went to go park my car. I have an A4. I shifted into park and i heard a snap. I thought nothing of it, but when i took my foot off the break, the car started to roll forward like it was in neutral. I shifted back into drive and then shifted to park again and took my foot off the break and the car still rolled. I did this a few times but got the same result each time. All the other gears are working. When i shift into park, it didn't feel like it was grabbing the shifter. Usually when i change gears from park - nuetral - revrese - drive, i can feel the shifter stop at each gear. When i shifted into park, I couldn't feel this, i just pushed it forward and nothing grabbed the shifter. Whats wrong with my car?? Right now, my car is sitting out there with just the parking break holding it in place. Oh, i have a 94 camaro with a 4L60-E.

Thanks,
Brian

[BillyCobin]

So all your other gears are working?

First, and most easiest, does the shifter move all the way into the park possition? You put it in park, then try to pull back on it, and you can't pull back unless you press on the brake, right? If you can just pull it back out without pressing on the brake, there is something wrong with the linkage in the console, not too hard to fix.

If it stays in park, the next thing to check is the gear selection lever on the outside of the transmission. It is that little lever you can see on the middle of the side of the transmission, by that round thing down in the bottom of the picture. Push the shifter inside the car into park, then get under the car and try to push that lever on the transmission all the way towards the front of the car. If it moves forward by a notch (you'll feel what I mean by a notch), then there is an adjustment you can make on the cable to increase it's length. I would like to explain how to do it, but it wouldn't make any sense without a picture, which I don't have. A transmission shop would do it for a couple of bucks though. More than likly though, since you heard a snap you would need a new one of these cables. They arn't hard to replace, maybe an hour. Should cost 10-15 bucks from a junk yard.

Ok, if the shifter goes into park, and the gear selection lever does not move forward anymore, then there is a problem with the internal linkage. At the top of the inside of the transmission you can see a brass colored sproket looking thing. That is moved by the gear selection lever. If you look to the top right corner of the transmission you can see a rod with a spring on it. That rod is attacked to the brass sproket thing, and that is what moves a little piece of metal into the workings of the transmission to keep it from rotating when you put it in park.

If none of the external linkage is the problem, and you're feeling adventurous, then take your pan off and take a look at that stuff. You could have broke the rod, or the spring. Possibly you broke the little piece of metal that move in and out of the transmission to lock it up. But unless you where moving pretty fast and through it into park, I doubt that broke.

I have a feeling it is going to be the cable that runs between the shifter in the car and the gear selection lever on the transmission.

Good luck.

[camaro6]

Thanks alot for that post!!! I wont' have time to check tonight, but i'll look at it tomorrow.

Thanks alot
Brian