Car is starting, but unable to change gears

[srthakur]

I have Toyota camry LE 2003 model.
Today evening, my car got started but I was uable to change the gears.
Aprt from that, my odometer reading goes off. my heaater fan also did not start.

It's very cold here in minneapolis, (-10 F outside). Is this because of that?
I started my car from my parking lot to shopping mall which is 0.5 miles apart. while coming back, this happened.
Wht could be the issue?

Thanks
Santosh

[leakyseals]

The three problems you mention are all different, hard to pinpoint one cause other than the cold. How many miles on car? When was the last time you changed the coolant and transmission fluid? If you let car idle for a half hour do things start working again?

[srthakur]

Originally Posted by leakyseals

The three problems you mention are all different, hard to pinpoint one cause other than the cold. How many miles on car? When was the last time you changed the coolant and transmission fluid? If you let car idle for a half hour do things start working again?

@TN:
I kept running the engine for 15 mins, but gear did not change.
I bought this car recently in Nov-11, so not sure, when coolant or Transmission was last change.but I did pre-buy inspection from Toyota dealer (120 points checkup), he showed everything is Ok to it.

[leakyseals]

Originally Posted by srthakur

@TN:
I kept running the engine for 15 mins, but gear did not change.
I bought this car recently in Nov-11, so not sure, when coolant or Transmission was last change.but I did pre-buy inspection from Toyota dealer (120 points checkup), he showed everything is Ok to it.

Ok, I would take it back to dealer and try for warranty coverage.

[JerryR]

Originally Posted by srthakur

I have Toyota camry LE 2003 model.
Today evening, my car got started but I was uable to change the gears.
Aprt from that, my odometer reading goes off. my heaater fan also did not start.

It's very cold here in minneapolis, (-10 F outside). Is this because of that?
I started my car from my parking lot to shopping mall which is 0.5 miles apart. while coming back, this happened.
Wht could be the issue?

Thanks
Santosh

"I was uable to change the gears" Are you saying that you cannot shift the transmission out of park?
"my odometer reading goes off" Do you mean it starts out ok but then goes off?
Jerry R

[JohnGD]

Sounds like an electrical problem. Maybe a sticking (frozen) reley?

If the shift level won't move, then the shift-lock solenoid isn't activated, for example. But the problem could be with the solenoid or with the brake light switch.

[srthakur]

Thanks All for you replies.

The update is: Next day evening when I went to tow the car to nearest mechanic from shopping mall parking lot, it worked fine. means I was able to shift the gears to Drive mode. Odometer reading also came back. It was not that cold like previous day but temp was around 0 F.

Still not sure about the reasons for Issue. may required to show it to good toyoto mechanic. but Anyone who knows any clues about this, then answers are welcome.

[srthakur]

Originally Posted by JerryR

"I was uable to change the gears" Are you saying that you cannot shift the transmission out of park?
@Jery: yes. transmission could not be shifted out of Park.
"my odometer reading goes off" Do you mean it starts out ok but then goes off?
@Jerry: means I am not able to see any digital numbers in that place. not any TRIP 1 or TRIP 2 numbers also.
Jerry R

[leakyseals]

Originally Posted by srthakur

Thanks All for you replies.

The update is: Next day evening when I went to tow the car to nearest mechanic from shopping mall parking lot, it worked fine. means I was able to shift the gears to Drive mode. Odometer reading also came back. It was not that cold like previous day but temp was around 0 F.

Still not sure about the reasons for Issue. may required to show it to good toyoto mechanic. but Anyone who knows any clues about this, then answers are welcome.

Clearly when the car was cold something happened to prevent the car from being driven. Most of us don't experience weather that cold so we would be unfamiliar with some type of cold weather "limp mode"? I'm totally guessing about that. You said you bought the car from a toyota dealer Nov-11? Bring it back and tell them what happened you should be covered. I would be suspicious of old coolant, transmission fluid, etc. Don't be so quick to trust the inspection papers. If it were me I would want the oil, transmission, and coolant changed after that. As far as electrical problem people suggest? Maybe but only after the fluids have been changed.

[JerryR]

From your description I would say- you have an electrical problem.
If you cannot shift out of park(you did remember to depress the brake pedal, right??), Is because the shift lock relay did not operate(See JohnGD answer to your post).
But for the fact that coupled with that, your odometer was dead, I would suspect Fuse GAUGE1(10A) that is common to both functions.
But now that the temp went up a bit you don't have a problem any more, (you have a temprature dependent intermittent) so my guess is-nobody is going to find any thing wrong unless the temp dips again, and all they are going to do is replace parts wholesale on the chance that they will hit the right one(shotgun method of troubleshooting).
If it were me, I would do nothing now as long as everything is working, get yourself another 10A fuse, familiarize yourself beforehand with the location of the GAUGE1 fuse, and replace it when the problem re-appears. If that fixes the problem, you're done. If not, you will have to do more troubleshooting.
HTH
JerryR

[BadChicken]

dont waste your time with the fluids. the fluid would have nothing to do with your problem. it might be the fluid if the shifter moved but the car didnt. Sounds like something was frozen solid, like a relay or a solenoid. If it was the gauge fuse then more than just the odometer wouldn't work