Fixing the Neon

As I’m sure you are well aware, the transmission on my Trailblazer is shot. (Don’t buy a GM product, worse decision I’ve ever made). So, I’m trying to get an old 1995 Dodge Neon running that has been “willed” to us. I went out to Rochester today to get the title transferred into our name so we can get the thing registered and titled (registration assuming we can get it running. Title so we can sell it if we have to for whatever we can get for it).

Last summer my Grandfather had Nora’s Neon towed up to the lake, where it could sit some more. I started to “passively” tinker with it to try and get it running because we thought if we could get it running then I’d be able to use it to drive to work with since it would be a lot better on gas than the truck and wouldn’t be tacking on the miles.

After I couldn’t get it started, I pulled the starter and had it tested: it was bad. We bought a used one online and I dropped it in. Nothing still… I tinkered a bit but didn’t know much more to do other than kick the tires and turn the key hoping it would work. So, I gave up.

Now, we need this car. It’s not a want, it’s a need! So, I had my dad come up to “kick the tires” with me since that’s about the extent of his mechanical ability and we tried to get it to a better spot to work on.

Yesterday we got it towed out, using my $10,000 trailblazer “tractor” (reverse, 1st, and 2nd gear are still working). While towing it, we noticed a clicking sound in the front end even though it was in Neutral (we now realize it was probably the transmission). So after we found it a new home in front of the garage where we could work on it better, we put it on blocks and started removing the tires (they’re all toast). While doing this, I noticed the tires would still spin even though it was in Park which made me nervous that the transmission was bad (just my luck). After talking to my dad’s friend Gary, he had me follow the shift cable and try to change the gears at the transmission side. That’s when I found the shift cable led to “nowhere” because it’s clip had broken on the transmission side.

Today, I braved the bitter cold and wind to try and manually get the car in Park so that I could try and start the car. No such luck at all. No matter how hard I tried to get the gear selector to move, I couldn’t. I pushed and i pulled and I heated it up and I WD-40′d it and I tap’d it lightly with a hammer and I hit it with a hammer and I fought and finally, I broke the bracket….

So, I removed the two brackets from the shift selector (there is a large, keyed bracket that the shifter hooks to, and then on top of that is another bracket that has a spring loaded cable attached to it that then connects to what looks like the throttle (What is this one for?!)). I then tried again to get the shifter to change gears but I couldn’t get it to go. Having been chilled to the bone (my legs were cramped because they were so cold), I called it quits.

I’m at a loss at this point because I have no idea why i can’t get the shifter to change gears. I also want to know what the other cable is for and I am having a hell of a time finding a new shifter cable!

Any ideas? They would be greatly appreciated!