Hey guys, I have a 98 automatic Jimmy that will not shift gears. The gear shift lever will physically move, but will not shift the gears. I thought it was the gear shift cable... and I checked behind the steering column and everything looked fine. I could see where it is connected and is shifting with the gear selector. I looked under the car where it is connected to the tranny and it looked like it was connected there. However, whenever I had someone shift the gears, it was not moving underneath. Any other idea's?

 

If everything is connected and it's not shifting the trans when you move the shift selector then your selector cable seems to be broken. Just happened on my truck last week. Easy fix, shouldn't take more than an hour or so with basic hand tools.

 

What all is involved in the fix? Also... when I went underneath to check it out, I tried to disconnect the cable. I was able to get the metal clip off on the right side, but couldnt get the otherside disconnected. How do I go about doing that?

Thanks for your help!

 

There is a more detailed post on the forums here, but long story short:
remove the lower section of the dash under the steering column (5 or 6 screws)
remove the steel brace under the steering column (4 bolts)
disconnect the shifter cable
remove the kick panel and door sill so you can pull the carpet back
Once you pull back the carpet, you can follow the shifter cable to the grommet in the floor it goes through. Remove this grommet and push the cable through the hole.
underneath the truck:
disconnect the shift cable from the trans
pull the clip from the bracket that holds the cable in place (may be a royal PITA, just keep at it, I nearly cut mine into pieces trying to remove it)
slide the cable towards the rear of the truck and out of the way.

Ta da, you've just removed the shifter cable.

Installation is the reverse of removal.

edit:
Post #3 is the one I was referring to: https://blazerforum.com/forum/2nd-ge...acement-45056/

 

Are there two clips? I saw one that was clearly metal and another one that looked to be plastic. The metal one came out with no problem... the one that I thought was a clip and was plastic... I could not get off. I didnt pry too hard because I didnt want to break it

 

Yes, the plastic one is the difficult one I'm referring to. If you're still unsure, post up a pic of the one you believe it is, and we can confirm.

Here is another site that Swartllk posted up that may help. It at least has some pictures of underneath. (F body trans setup and ours are similar)

Adjust A4 Trans Linkage

 

I cant get pictures at the moment.. I am sure it is the same one you are thinking of. Any tips on how to get it out?

 

Just keep working at it, haha.

I wonder if some lube could help, but I'm not sure about how well it works on plastics. I just kept working on mine and eventually it got loose enough for me to get an angled screwdriver in and pry it out.

 

did you just pry it off or did you have to pinch or pull anything (like how harness plugs are setup) to get it off? I am just worried about the plastic breaking

 

The plastic clip just pries out.

There are two places that you have to pinch in the whole process. One is inside the truck, to remove the cable from the bracket under the steering column. The other is after you get that plastic U shaped connector out, squeeze the cable end and slide it through that bracket.

I nearly broke my U shaped bracket getting it out and was concerned, but finally it came out and the new cable has a new one included, so I was in luck.