HELP transmission problem i think?

My 1998 toyota camry starts but doesnt move out of park. Its automatic
and the shifter slides VERY easily from reverse to neutral to drive
even without pushing the button on the side of the shifter and nothing
happens, no movement. The tow truck driver who came to get my car
showed me a broken cable- i think he said something about the linkage??
He said the part would cost $180 dollars. I was wondering if this was
the real problem. He didnt seem that confident and I just moved out of
state so I dont have a trusted mechanic and I dont want to get ripped
off? does anyone have any ideas? Feedback is greatly appreciated!

"jules" <julesg84@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1160937867.175235.240280@e3g2000cwe.googlegroups.com...[color=blue]
> My 1998 toyota camry starts but doesnt move out of park. Its automatic
> and the shifter slides VERY easily from reverse to neutral to drive
> even without pushing the button on the side of the shifter and nothing
> happens, no movement. The tow truck driver who came to get my car
> showed me a broken cable- i think he said something about the linkage??
> He said the part would cost $180 dollars. I was wondering if this was
> the real problem. He didnt seem that confident and I just moved out of
> state so I dont have a trusted mechanic and I dont want to get ripped
> off? does anyone have any ideas? Feedback is greatly appreciated!
>[/color]

If the shifter moves too easily, then there is a good chance that the
shifter or cable that links the shifter to the transmission is broken.
Hopefully, that is the case with your car, because the other possible cause
is a bad transmission, which will cost thousands more to fix than a shift
cable.

You can check with a AAA-approved repair facility, your local Toyota dealer,
or a facility that employs ASE certified technicians for diagnosis and
repair.
--

Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)

The broken cable (linkage) makes sense.

As a point of order, the move from Reverse to Neutral to Drive without
pressing the button is NOT part of the problem. It is NORMAL to make this
movement.

Pressing the button (or pulling the column shift lever) is a safety feature
to prevent selecting gears by mistake. You must press the button (pull the
lever) to shift into or out of park, or to shift into Reverse OR a gear
lower than Drive. If in N or R, you can shift to D without the button, but
need the button to select 2 or 1. If in D, you need the button to select a
lower gear (as described above) or to shift into R. You can shift from D to
N without the button, but need to use it to select R or P.

You describe another symptom -- ease of movement -- that says the linkage is
faulty, but the movement without pressing the button is not part of your
Problem Set.





"jules" <julesg84@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:1160937867.175235.240280@e3g2000cwe.googlegroups.com...[color=blue]
> My 1998 toyota camry starts but doesnt move out of park. Its automatic
> and the shifter slides VERY easily from reverse to neutral to drive
> even without pushing the button on the side of the shifter and nothing
> happens, no movement. The tow truck driver who came to get my car
> showed me a broken cable- i think he said something about the linkage??
> He said the part would cost $180 dollars. I was wondering if this was
> the real problem. He didnt seem that confident and I just moved out of
> state so I dont have a trusted mechanic and I dont want to get ripped
> off? does anyone have any ideas? Feedback is greatly appreciated!
>[/color]