HELP! Car Mechanics Or Link not engaged?

[nunyadam]

The patient is a black 98 Dodge Ram 1500
5.2liter v-8 with an automatic Trans.
Tilt steering cruise control column shifter.

The problem is the shifter. Moving it from parker to say PLUTO (it only moves through the normal range.) does nothing but move the indicator on the dash. Truck stayed in park.

Being a car guy (I did go to Wyoming Tech.) I opened the hood to have a look, and couldn't see a bleeding thing. (Did I mention this happened Friday night (11:30pm) after work?) After borrowing a flashlight from the office I found the linkage and inspected it from the Trans all the way to the steering shaft. All was good. While I was under the hood I found that as I could shift the linkage from the base of the steering column.

I drove it home last night but I will need it Monday. I really don't like have to use my (no offense to Rednecks I iz one.) Redneck manuall Tranzmishun to get bac and forth to work. (Thank god the parking brake works so I can get out and shift)

I did everything but remove the steering column today and can tell you that the shift lever is moving everything I can see at least half way down the column.

How did it break in the last foot? And what is the spring for on the steering column? (Outside under the hood.) Unfortunately I don't have a manual on it.

Is there just an odd ball part there I forgot about? (Or was I to hung over to remember.) (I only missed one day.)

Hopefully this isn't going to require a whole new column.
What about the air bag? I am a Mechanic I just want to know what I need to do after step 1. "Disconnect the Battery."

[Gomer]

Don't have much advice for you. on the problem... couple comments tho.

The whole parking brake, crawl under the hood and shift it thing isn't the safest thing in the world to do. I understand you need to do it, but I cringe when I hear that you are.

The airbag.... dangerous item, even w/ battery disconnected. I'd at the very least find the exact procedure for disabling it before you attempted to remove it. Having that sort of thing professionaly repaired would not be out of the question for me.

[Brainchild]

Nunya, sounds likethe shift tube is broken.Not a common problem on a truck that new I wouldn't think.
The airbag might give ya some headache,and the tilt steering/ignition/turnsignal/dimmer/wiper switch is a ****** to deal with sometimes,after that it's pretty straight forward.
I'd buy a Chiltons and look it over before I tackled it I think.

Good luck

[nunyadam]

Yeah it's not the safest thing in the world. but I got it home. I will be making a trip to the library for further research before i do anything drastic. (tearing the whole column isn't drastic nunya? Nunya: No Not for me.)
the parking brake works fine to hold it at an idle in either forward or reverse. I realize this is not the safest method, but ya gotta do what ya gotta do. the chance of it jumping out of gear while driving aren't much higher than they are of you knocking yours out of gear while driving. {imo}

If I hadn't just sold my back up vehicle to my sister in-law (and no she isn't also my aunt.) i would be driving that piece of crap dodge van.
(honest it ran fine when i sold it.) j/k

[Brainchild]

If I hadn't just sold my back up vehicle to my sister in-law (and no she isn't also my aunt.)

LMAO

I have a Dodge van, and I hate it.I know what ya mean

[RedFury]

It's probably something as simple as a cotter key that fell out/broke and the linkage is simply disconnected. Things like this suck. I had an 83 civic that broke the clutch cable on me in the middle of winter. I managed to deal with driving it home by starting it in gear (I could fortunately still do this...no neutral saftey switch ) and then shift/downshift with the accelerator ( clutchless shifting by timing gears to rpm/ engine-tranny load ).

Good luck, hopefully it is something simple. You may want to check to see if there are any technical service bulletins about this from a local Dodge Dealership. It may be a recall item and you can have them fix it for free.

19-02-98A APR 98 Steering Column - Clicking When Using Gear Selector

This is the closest thing I could find...seems to gap the whole series of trucks/engines.

[nunyadam]

shift tube?, is that what its called?
i have never had one break like this. thanks for a name.lol
so i guess Duck tape won't work for this one huh?

[nunyadam]

Originally posted by RedFury
It's probably something as simple as a cotter key that fell out/broke and the linkage is simply disconnected. Things like this suck. I had an 83 civic that broke the clutch cable on me in the middle of winter. I managed to deal with driving it home by starting it in gear (I could fortunately still do this...no neutral saftey switch ) and then shift/downshift with the accelerator ( clutchless shifting by timing gears to rpm/ engine-tranny load ).

Good luck, hopefully it is something simple. You may want to check to see if there are any technical service bulletins about this from a local Dodge Dealership. It may be a recall item and you can have them fix it for free.

I had a dodge Omni that broke more than one clutch cable. I drove it like you did a time or two. i magyvered it one time by feeding the cable through the tube backwords and using an old restaraunt cheese slicer handle to hold the end at the Transmission. (drove it for a couple weeks that way, replaced it, and tossed it in with the spare tire for next time.)

[nunyadam]

sweet If they still have it. I may have found a used column for less than$150 about 30 miles away.

[Ed_S]

nunya, before you go with that used column, I'd stop by a Dodge dealer's parts dept & ask for advise. They can print you an exploded view of the column & surely they'll know the most common thing that breaks in it.

If it was a Ford truck, I'd already know what you need. 73-91 has a small part which would break under duress after 10 yrs or so, and 92 up has a shift tube & rod that's common.
(no, it's not a "bad design", truck columns take a lot of abuse and eventually something's gotta give!)
Part costs about $10 for the early style, or $30 for the later - and that's at LIST price.

Point is that you can easily spend more for a salvage assembly than for new parts, and the used one could be on the verge of breaking anyway!