DodgeIntrepid.Net Forums banner

Ignition key stuck and no shift

857 views 7 replies 3 participants last post by  Dworkin 
#1 ·
My car is a '96 Chrysler Intrepid 3.3l ~120,000 miles with no major repairs only reguilar maintenance.

My problem is two-fold. The first seems to have been answered elsewhere in the forums but it may also be related to the second problem I'm having.

The first problem is that my key will not turn to the OFF position and therefore I can't remove it. Wiggling, banging the wheel, hard shifting and pulling the shifter button does not seem to help at all. I have been disconnecting the battery at night so it doesn't drain but have also had to trickle charge the battery a couple times when I forgot to disconnect. I believe the shifter cable is the cause of this.

My second problem is more serious. On Saturday I pulled onto the highway and the car would not accelerate past about 40mph. I recalled seeing that the car has a 'limp mode' and assumed that was the case. I pulled over, stopped the engine and disconnected the battery since I could not physically turn the car off. When I restarted and shifted into drive, the car seemed to hesitate before I felt the tranny engage. As soon as the car started to shift into second, I felt my power drop off and the car wouldn't accelerate any further. After a few more attempts, I was finally able to get the car moving again long enough to get it off the highway but as soon as my speed dropped, the tranny lost power again. BTW. Reverse gear works perfectly.

This car has run flawlessly for me and I have never seen the check engine light or had bumpy shifts. Could these problems be related? I am currently on a very tight budget and am hoping it's just a sensor or cable.

Any help would be a Godsend.
 
See less See more
#3 ·
Okay.
After consulting the manual, I definately think your key problem is the shifter interlock cable. It could be the tumblers in the ignition cylinder itself, but I doubt it.

First, download the sevice manual here:
http://dvms.dvusd.org/02lhe/

now, go to section 21, look under shift interlock cable. It will tell you how to take it apart and check to see if something has come apart or broken on you. You'll at least be able to get the key out. You may get the cover off the column or shifter and spot the problem right away if a clip has broken or come adrift.

Now, once you've got that fixed and you can turn the key again, use the turn the key on and off three times (without actually starting the engine and finishing in the on position) to pull the fault codes from the computer. Once you've got those, we can progress to finding out what, if anything is wrong with the powertrain.

The is a slight chance that you may have spiked on of the modules with the battery on of technique. Not very likely though. The tranny could be a little upset with your erasing its memory everytime yoou disconnect the battery too. Once again, unlikely though. We need the codes to tell for sure.
Do a search if you are unsure of the key on off procedure, there's multiple threads on this site about it.

Cheers :beerchug:

BJ :anon:
 
#4 ·
Thanks. I'll download the manual and see what I can do to get the key out. Seems to be the next logical step seeing as I can then finally get to the diagnostic codes. I'll reply again as soon as I havesome codes to pass on but any other theories/possiblities in the meantime will help put my mind at ease.
 
#5 ·
Dworkin said:
My car is a '96 Chrysler Intrepid 3.3l ~120,000 miles with no major repairs only reguilar maintenance.

My problem is two-fold. The first seems to have been answered elsewhere in the forums but it may also be related to the second problem I'm having.

The first problem is that my key will not turn to the OFF position and therefore I can't remove it. Wiggling, banging the wheel, hard shifting and pulling the shifter button does not seem to help at all. I have been disconnecting the battery at night so it doesn't drain but have also had to trickle charge the battery a couple times when I forgot to disconnect. I believe the shifter cable is the cause of this.

My second problem is more serious. On Saturday I pulled onto the highway and the car would not accelerate past about 40mph. I recalled seeing that the car has a 'limp mode' and assumed that was the case. I pulled over, stopped the engine and disconnected the battery since I could not physically turn the car off. When I restarted and shifted into drive, the car seemed to hesitate before I felt the tranny engage. As soon as the car started to shift into second, I felt my power drop off and the car wouldn't accelerate any further. After a few more attempts, I was finally able to get the car moving again long enough to get it off the highway but as soon as my speed dropped, the tranny lost power again. BTW. Reverse gear works perfectly.

This car has run flawlessly for me and I have never seen the check engine light or had bumpy shifts. Could these problems be related? I am currently on a very tight budget and am hoping it's just a sensor or cable.

Any help would be a Godsend.
There was a recall on the shift interlock cable for 1994. Don't know about your 1996 but it's worth asking a dealer about.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top