Transmission Shift Problem

Sounds like something with the actual shift stick. Maybe the cold, maybe something was spilled on the dash at one time. Maybe dirt collected in the shift stick

 

you sure u had your foot on the brake the first time you started the car? It wont let you put it in drive if you dont have the foot on the brake when you press power.

 

my shifting problems began about a week after purchase. The shift would lock and I couldn't get it to move to reverse or drive. I called the dealer and they called a truck. When the tow truck came, of course it went into gear. I could tell the guy thought I was whacko. I drove to the dealer, they performed a "health check," and found nothing wrong. I drove it home and four days later it happened again. I called the dealer, but then about fifteen minutes later, it worked, so I called them off. I drove to the supermarket, and it happened again. Stuck at the suoermarket,I called them again, furious. As I waited for help, I just kept on starting it over a and over, and finally it worked. i concluded that I either had to wait or continually restart it for the gears to work. I called the dealer back, and said this was unacceptable and convinced them to give me new car. When my wife came down for us to drive to dinner, it happened again. She said to let her try. My reaction, which some people will understand and others will not was extremely negative. She finally was able to get it going, she said by flooring the break and keeping it floored until it went into gear. I claimed it just so happened that was one of the times it the problem, which was random didn't occur. She maintained her claim that that was the solution. I agreed to a controlled experiment and of course she was right. No problem since. For those who were not able to get though the story, the long and the short of it is FLOOR THE BREAK AND KEEP IT FLOORED UNTIL YOU GO INTO GEAR.

 

You need to press the brake to shift into D, but you shouldn't need to floor it. Perhaps your 2010 is one of the ones where the brake switch is adjusted poorly, requiring a lot of brake pressure to bring on the brake lights. Check and see how hard you need to press before the brake lights come on.

Tom

 

First of all, could the moderators please move this to the Gen III forum? Why are the last two posts in the Gen II forum?

Second, to Prius Love Hate, what you describe is a classic symptom of the brake pedal switch not being adjusted properly. Follow Tom's advice and see if the brake lights turn on when you barely press the brake pedal, or if you have to floor the brake pedal

 

My 2005 Prius has this exact issue, and similarly, the dealer claims to have never heard of the problem. A quick search on-line reveals that many others are experiencing this problem.

Last winter I noticed this problem start to develop. When shifting into Drive or Reverse, there was a loud clicking sound and the shifter felt like it was sticking. I pointed this out to the dealer and was told the problem was due to the plastic piece inside the shifter mechanism getting brittle. In cold weather (really cold) there is very little flexibility in the plastic. I expressed my concern that the plastic would break or that the car wouldn't be able to come out of gear, and the service manager assured me that this would not happen. I was told to not worry because this is only a cosmetic issue which would not affect the car's operation.

This morning, 10 degerss (F) outside, and it won't stay in gear. It sticks and is very stiff, and it returns to neutral a few seconds after I release the shifter knob.

By the time I got the car to the dealer, the car was warm and there was no problem. The dealer acted puzzled and said this was unheard of, yet he also said there was a diagnostic proceedure for this problem their technician was going to read.

I'll keep my estimated $550+ repair money to myself for now and see if I can get by with letting the car warm up a bit before driving. I think this problem won't happen during most of the year, and maybe by the time the shifter breaks altogether, Toyota will have a more realistic fix available.

 

I believe that you need a new shift lever mechanism, since you say the car will not remain in D. This problem has been reported by other members. I have posted on how to replace the shift lever mechanism should you wish to DIY.

The short-term workaround is to place a small weight on the shift lever, thus holding the lever in the D position.

 

Hey, using a weight is a great idea! I'm working on a little "weight belt" that I can drape over the shifter in the winter. It'll be kinda like a scarf for my car when it's cold.

I'm interested in replacing the shift lever mechanism, or if I'm lucky, just fixing the broken piece of plastic. Can you post/send a link to your DIY instructions?

Thanks. You're very helpful.

 

http://priuschat.com/forums/gen-ii-...ing/65102-how-replace-2g-gearshift-lever.html

 

Has anyone experienced this problem in the opposite temperature conditions, i.e, pretty hot? I have been experiencing this problem when the outside temperature is pretty hot, I'm going to say 90+ F. I can drive by holding the shift lever down and then, after driving for a while it stays in gear, like whatever has heated up, causing the problem, is cooled down enough. I don't like driving that way, so I would like to ID the problem and fix it. Thank you.

 

Sounds like you already have IDed it: a failed shift lever.