dificulty (stiff) shifting a cold automatic

[rcweston]

1998 Lumina 3.1
It's getting cold again in northern Utah. On these cold mornings, upon start up, it is very difficult to change the transmission from park to reverse or to drive. It's like it is full of cold honey instead of fluid lubricant! It's stiff to move the shift lever, but it does move.
At first I thought it might be the linkage, but now I am having second thoughts that it might be in the transmission.
After driving a short distance, it seems to loosen back up again and shift easily, causing me to think that it isn't the linkage, but rather that something is warming up and loosening. I suspect the linkage would stay cold under these conditions and not change much from being so stiff.
I changed the transmission fluid out a year or so ago and things worked fine then.
Does anyone out there have experience with this problem?
Does anyone know how the linkage works on this model before I start taking things apart?
Thanks Rex

[maxwedge]

First thing you may want to do, is disconnect the linkage from the trans/prndl switch on top on the trans, l/s of engine compt. Then see what it feels like from the in car shifter. If it much easier to move than the issue is in the prndl itself or the shaft going into the valve body.

[Schurkey]

My money is on a defective shift cable; especially if the weather seal is gone, and there's a drop of moisture inside.

Perhaps it's just lack of lube on the cable inside the cable sheath...but if a tiny amount of water is involved, it'll ice up and make the cable difficult to move. As soon as the heat in the engine compartment melts the ice, it dramatically reduces the effort needed--but the cable may still need lube to operate as-new; and perhaps the cable or sheath is damaged by the repeated thaw/freeze of the water.

If there was a LOT of water in the cable, you wouldn't be able to break it loose, the shifter would be stuck until the water thawed.

[jeffcoslacker]

It's very common on these. The lube used in the cable is dried out, and gets hard as a rock in below freezing temps. Sometimes it's all you can do to move the shifter.

Long as it's a column shift, there's probably nothing wrong with the shifter itself...sometimes floor shifters will get fulla spilled coffee and soda or whatever and stick pretty good, worse in the cold.

My '97 has had the difficult shifting when cold for years. I pop the clip at the adjuster in the middle of the cable under the hood (right by the driver's side strut tower) and pull the cable apart, spray some lube in there, and re-connect and adjust. After running it through the ranges fully a few times to work it in, after a day or two it stars to ease up and work right.

I've had to do it every few years for a long time now.

[Ginsengbull]

I had the same problem on my 97. Took off the cover underneath the steering column. Looked in up above the steering column and found a bushing that the steering linkage pivots around while shifting through the gears.
I put some newspaper on the floormat and sprayed it with WD-40, and then with some 10w40 while cycling the gear shift through the gears, and it now works smoother than the bolt on an Enfield.

[autoservice2013]

disconnect the linkage from the trans/prndl switch on top on the trans, l/s of engine compt.

[rcweston]

As the winter has progressed, the cold has become intense this year and the shifting has gotten worse. But I have had time to notice just what might be happening. It seems as though it is hard to shift until the cabin gets good and warm. Usually about a 10 mile drive. The warmer it gets the better the shifting works. This is now leaning me to think that it could be the linkage rather than the transmission end. (although the transmission is warming up during this period also)!
If a sticky cable is as simple to fix as the last few post have stated, I need to move it up my to-do list and get it done, even though it is so cold to work on it now. Hopefully there will be a day above freezing in the forecast soon.
Thanks for every ones replies.
RC

[Tech II]

As the guys have stated, the easiest way to find the problem, is to disconnect the cable at the transmission, with car in park, key out of ignition, and e-brake on....do this at the end of the day, when everything is warm....just need a large flat head screwdriver wedged between the arm of the linkage on the tranny and the bottom of the cable....do a twist and it pops right off......

Now manually rotate the arm of the linkage, out of park(remember, you want the e-brake on, vehicle not running, so the car won't move) to reverse, to drive, back to reverse back to park.....this will give you a "feel" for the manual valve in the tranny......now insert key, turn to on, don't crank or start.....foot on brake and move shifter......it should move like "butter", with absolutely no resistance.....Shift back to park and remove key....

Next day when cold, turn key to on(don't crank/start)...apply brake....now move shifter out of park.....if hard compared to when warm, then it's either console shifter or cable....if it moves just as easy as before, with e-brake applied, and engine not running, attempt to manually move the linkage arm on the tranny.....if hard to move compared to when warm, then the manual valve is binding in the valve body, or in some rare cases, it's the bushing in the tranny the linkage rotates in, that is binding....

Easy to reattach the tranny cable...just position end over the ball, and with a pair of pliers, squeeze together and it pops back on......a little lube on the ball makes it easier...