installed carpet kit, now cant shift trans.!!

[priddle07]

Hi, I just had my car parked for a while to install my new carpet kit and patch holes etc. and now that its ready, its not letting me shift at all (automatic 73 superbeetle). I can try to shift and the engine will slow down but it wont slip into gear. If i put a lot of pressure on it it will just grind. Its funny because it was working fine a while ago. mabey I just disconected wires by accident, any help would be great. oh and It was low on trans fluid, so i filled it up but no change. thanks for the help

[Doug Rodrigues]

You have the Automatic Stick Shift? Let's see.....it's been about35 years since I worked on one. Did the wire to the shifter contact pull loose or what? Maybe the contact inside the base of the shifter just needs adjustment. Easy to do if you take the shifter lever apart to see how it's designed. It's a very simple adjustment if you know that design. Oh, and don't be forcing the transmission into gear or you won't have any left!

[priddle07]

Hi, thanks for the help, I actually got it fixed the same day by a man that knows a lot about them, it seems the wire running from the shifter that engages the clutch was pulled apart, he hooked that up again (after finding the right one) and its been shifting fine ever since, he also adjusted the shifter lever part, thanks again.

[Doug Rodrigues]

Actually, grounding that wire disengages the torque convertor. Rocking the shift lever grounds the contact point. Since the wire had become pulled out for whatever reason, the contact point couldn't be used to ground that wire and the torque convertor wouldn't disengage. That's why you couldn't shift unless you forced it into gear. In a pinch, IF you were stuck out in the middle of nowhere, you could shift it into gear prior to starting the engine. Once the engine started, off you would go. You could then synrconize the engine RPM's to slip into higher gears...exactly the same if you had a clutch but shifted without disengaging the clutch. Rough on the gears but better than being stranded in the middle of nowhere. Personally, I feel that the introduction of the Automatic Stick Shift was a big mistake. If the wire to the shifter didn't have enough freedom to allow movement of the shifter, the wire strands would break from repeatitive bending and you'd be stuck again.