2002 Volvo S80 Gearshift

BCONROY52

MEMBER
2002 VOLVO S80

Transmission problem
2002 Volvo S80 6 cyl Automatic 147661 miles

Each morning, after my car has been sitting idle over night, I can start my engine but I am unable to shift out of park. However, if I let the car run for a while (some mornings for 5 minutes and other mornings as long as 30 minutes), I am eventually able to shift into a different gear (reverse or drive). I am in and out of my car frequently throughout the day, and do not experience any difficulty (or delay) shifting out of park and into gear.

This has been going on for several weeks. At first, I took the car to a local mechanic who replaced the ignition coil #5 and he said that they may solve my problem; however, I still have not been able to immediately shift into gear when starting my car the past few days.

Do you know any potential reasons for this? I thought it might have something to do with the transmission fluid, but I add some and am still encountering problems. I would really appreciate any advice you can provide me. Thank you!

1 Reply

JIS001

MECHANIC
3,411 POSTS

There can be a few reasons why this could be happening. For example. Have you spilled any fluids around the center counsel like coffee, soda, or any other sweet drinks? If you have then the shift lock cable could be sticking. To inspect, remove the side cover for the center console on the drivers side. Insert key an turn to position2. You should see the cable slide freely. When you turn it back to the off position, the cable should slide back again easily. Turn key back and forth slowly to see the cable go back and forth. If you see the cable not move smooth and seem like it binds, spray some WD40 on the sliding guide and clean up the dry sticky spillage. If that is O.K. Next time you have problems getting out of park, have some one look at the brake lights. If you cant get out of park and the brake lights dont come on, then you have a bad brake light switch and you will need to have it replace. If the brake lights do come on and the cable is sliding normally, then you have a faulty micro switch in the gear selector assembly. You will need to take it in to a shop to have it replace.