Dear Bricksters:

There is not much info in the FAQ on the shiftlock override button, (except that they are prone to problems). Has anyone ever repaired one? If so would you post all the details, especially how it is accessed on the '95 940?

Thanks,

Len

I have a 1994 940NA acquired after an accident. The shifter won't go into PARK. It moves through the rest of the gears fine. I notice mention of a SHIFT LOCK relay but don't seem to find it's location, it's not with the rest of the relays. Figure it's a good place to start. Anybody knows?

Dear tedv,

Hope you're well. The part in question - #1328867 - is mounted in the space under the instrument cluster, where the ignition and ABS modules are mounted. This part, used on cars with Aisin-Warner automatic transmissions (up to 1994), is not relevant to the gear shift mechanism. Rather, this relay has to do with the transmission's internal workings.

If the shifter won't go into the park, the most likely reason is that the shifter lever has been jammed by something that fell through the bristles, on either side of the shift lever.

To access that area, see the FAQs for instructions on removing the shift lever knob. The gear selector plate - with "D", "P", etc. on it - is removed by compressing it (front-to-back) so that its mounting lugs disengage.

If your fingers aren't long and/or strong enough, use a very large water pump pliers, with the jaws wrapped in duct tape, to avoid breaking the plastic. Once you're done, position the plate and press down to re-seat it onto its lugs.

I'd bet you'll find a coin or some similar item.

Hope this helps.

Yours faithfully,

Spook

Wonderful, that's good news! Happy New Year, Spook!

Some details about the shift lock system. there are two independent parts- the electrical and the mechanical.

checking either part is a real pain. You have to remove the shift handle (which mean desoldering the 4th gear over-ride switch (the small switch at the rear of the handle. pry out the switch and desolder the two wires. then remove the shifter covering. you do not need to remove the transmission arm from the housing to remove the shifter unit from the car.

Resoldering the 4th gear switch wires can be difficult if there is not enough slack in the wires. Extending the wires requires complete removal the shifter housing and then removal of the sifter itself from the housing. The connectors for a 1993 are located just below the right side of the fuse panel. they are attached to the frame with a zip tie (it is not visible). the connectors for a '94 and '95 are at the end of a long lead that is located below the carpet (where the carpet goes below the right side of the consul housing in the passenger compartment). You can relatively easily pry the carpet from below the bottom edge of the consul housing to expose the connectors (do not need to remove the side of the consul).

the electrical consists of the solenoid and the micro-switch. they are hooked up in series. If one fails, the system fails. How to check. use an ohm meter. connect the + lead to the white wire (power) and the - lead to the black wire (use the connector - power goes into the solenoid and out though the micro-switch - the micro-switch contact face up, allowing easy checking of each part). the solenoid had an internal diode that will give infinite resistance if the ohm test leads are reversed. a good soleniod will have a resistance of about 1.65 M ohm (with power off). replacing the solenoid requires requires complete removal the shifter housing and then removal of the sifter from the housing. this is a several hour job if you have done it before. This is one of these jobs that it is a good idea to go to a junk yard and practice first. a lot of things can easily break.

with no power (and shifter in P), the solenoid is in its extended position and blocks the mechanical system from working. when power is on (brake pressed and lever in P), the solenoid activate and pulls away from (freeing) the mechanical part of the shift system. When the shift lever is out of park, the solenoid is de-energizaed. The solenoid shaft extends, but has no effect on the mechanical system (because of the design). when the shift lever goes back into park, it locks the mechanical system (unless the brake peddle is pressed, activating the solenoid. play with it and you will see).

to remove the shifter unit from the housing, you need to unhook the cable from the front end of the unit. Turn the key to on to give enough slack to do this. do not pry it out (you will break the teeth that hold the ball). you then need to completely remove the shifter arm and shaft. Be sure to mark the exact location of the shifter arm on the outside of the housing (it's end is a gear and it can easily be installed in the wrong position).

if the mechanical system breaks, it is not repairable (I have never hear of a mechanical system failure). It must be replaced. the mechanical system has one operation, to allow the lever to move from park to the rest of the locations (As long as the solenoid is activated). when the ignition key is turned to position II, the cable extends, rotating a release and allowing the lever to move. You can by-pass the solenoid by turning the key and pressing the shift release button at the bottom of the shifter. this activates a secondary system that allows the shift lever to move (even though the solenoid has locked the primary mechanical method). You can see this system when the top of the shifter has been removed. It is a long steel wire/rod on the left side of the unit. Install the shift release shaft and press on it. you will see that wire/rod move.

I hope the above is not to confusing. I had to pull and take apart two units in a junk yard before I felt conformable doing it at home. at a junk yard, there is no ignition key, so you have to cut the cable to remove it.

Agree with all, and if problem is David's item d) which is likely (faced it myself one 940 ago), then I very strongly suggested you go to the bottom of David's linked FAQ item, to the section marked,

"Disabling the Entire Park-Shift-Lock System"

Unless you have rambunctious kids around who for some reason are allowed to monkey unattended in the car, then disable the shift-lock and save yourself a lot of grief. After performing this procedure and driving the car for many years with my family, I never once regretted it!

My two cents'.

--Greg

Everyone of course is entitled to their opinion, but I'll side with Art Benstein's approach of never disabling a security feature. If it was hundreds of dollars involved, I'd understand the disabling approach somewhat, but if the problem is only the microswitch, then once you're in there, a $20 part will put it back into normal operation.

Len still hasn't indicated exactly what his issue is. What were your symptoms before you did the bypass? Did you remove the solenoid completely?

Although you may have no regrets to this point, I guess it's the "what if" factor. Sure, the odds are low, but it's possible that some day, someone may accidently put the shifter into neutral on a hill, with unpredictable consequences. I haven't used air bags yet either, but it's nice to know they're there, in case, some day.
--
David Armstrong - '86 240(350k km?), '93 940T(270k km), '89 240(parts source for others) near Toronto

Good info from Matt. I would add that to remove the parking brake tray, you need to remove the ashtray and it's holder, plus the clip on the front lip. You may want to remove the centre console behind the parking brake tray too. Doesn't take long and it makes pulling the parking brake tray a bit easier. (See link below).

You may also want to pull the four bolts that hold the shifter in place. This allows you to manoeuver the whole thing a bit, making it easier to get at the microswitch.

As Matt also pointed out, you didn't actually say what your problem was. Assuming that the '95 is the same as the '93, there's three functions involved:

1) Normally you're prevented from coming out of Park unless the ignition is on and the brake pedal is depressed
2) You can't remove the key unless you're in Park
3) There's a Shift Lock Override that allows you to bypass the functionality in 1) when it's not working correctly.

Matt has covered function 2). Your description indicates you're having problems with 3); is that the case?

If it is 1) you're having problems with, it could be:
a) brake light switch (you'd have no brake lights if this was the problem)
b) shift lock relay (I believe this is above panel above the driver's feet
c) the shift lock solenoid
d) the microswitch that senses the shift lever is in Park: Transmission Not Shifting Out of Park: Shift Lock Solenoid

In my experience, and what I've seen posted here, problems with getting the lever out of Park (1) are almost always due to the microswitch (d).

--
David Armstrong - '86 240(350k km?), '93 940T(270k km), '89 240(parts source for others) near Toronto

What exactly is the problem??, below are my experiences with the shift lock system.

I had a problem with my shift lock override a while back. I was unable to remove the key from the ignition. There is a cable running from the ignition down to the shifter that wont let you remove the key unless the car is in park. your right, there isnt a lot to go by in the faq, but once you get it apart and get in there you can see whats going on more or less.

Anyway, to access the works begin by removing the tray underneath the parking brake. I believe its secured by two torx screws. There will also be a few connectors under there for the heated seats. Disconnect those and get the whole assembly out of the way.

Next you need to pop off the shifter cover. There arent any fasteners, it just pulls up toward you. (Keep track of the shift lock button, it just floats around) Once the cover is lifted up you can get a look down in there. You might want to start by checking out the circuit. There's a switch on the brake pedal and then some type of solenoid up near the shifter. Make sure there are no broken wires or that the switch isn't out of adjustment. (suppose that might be the first thing to check)

The problem with my system was a bobby pin that had fallen down inside the mechanism, not allowing the key to be released while in park. I dont know if I was much help, but maybe enough to get you started. Post back with details or progress.

-matt



--
'90 245 215k, '93 945 176k

Greg, Matt, Dave:
Thanks to you all for responding. Dave guessed my problem correctly. Sorry I did not state it more clearly. I cannot override the shift lock by pushing the little rectangular button at the rear of the shifter so as to be able to move the shifter back, as when working on the car, without having to put the ignition on and stepping on the brake. It does release as it should otherwise. I just got this car and it doesn't have an owners manual. I thought the override was a mechanical thing as it is on my '91 245, but it just doesn't release the shifter when I push down on the button. I have been able to remove eneough plastic to replace the bulb in the selector switch but was afraid to remove the four 10mm bolts holding the tray in place. I re-read the FAQ link Dave cited and it had a lot more pertinent information than I thought it did when I first read it. I don't think I have the skill necessary to disable the function and I still have a few questions. Is this a mechanical linkage that manually closes the microswitch? Does the override only work when the system fails or should I be able to use it to release the shifter when ever I want by pressing the button?
Also the rear ashtray had a blue bulb soldered into a two pronged socket that was attached to two individual wires. I have never seen a bulb like this in all my years of Volvo ownership, and can find no place on the web that has them. Have you any idea where to get one other than a Volvo dealership?

Thanks for your patience,

Len

After reading your second post, I re-read my owner's manual:

Shiftlock release

The gear selector is locked in the P position. To manually release the shift lock, turn the starting (ignition) key to position I and press firmly on the "SHIFTLOCK OVERRIDE" button located near the base of the gear selector (see illustration). While holding the override button down, move the gear selector from the (P)ark position.

According to this, when you can't get the shifter out of park with the ignition on and the brake pedal depressed, depressing the mechanical shift lock override button with just the ignition on should suffice (stepping on the brake pedal should not be necessary). The point of the shift lock override is to get around the failure of any or all of the following: brake pedal switch, shift lock relay, park position microswitch. Of these three, from what I've read here, the microswitch is the most likely culprit. It seems to me that replacing it is FAR easier than disabling the whole system as described in the FAQ.

"Is this a mechanical linkage that manually closes the microswitch?"
There's a pin near the base of the shift shaft that slides onto the angled lever of the microswitch when the shifter is moved into the Park position. This closes the microswitch.

There's no need or point in using the override unless one of the above three items has failed.

I advise you to get the bulb from the dealer. For low-ticket items, paying a 50-200% premium is only a buck or two, which is worth it compared to getting something apart, only to find the replacement part doesn't fit/work.

Try this link to download the manual for your car. Didn't use to require an account, I don't think; apparently does now, but I imagine it's free.





--
David Armstrong - '86 240(350k km?), '93 940T(270k km), '89 240(parts source for others) near Toronto

I tried the link today [June 21, 2013] David, and it brought me to a site for newer model Volvos. Perhaps they have stopped carrying older model owner's manuals.

Just mention this because I found your information very useful.

On my 93 940T, the shiftlock override button only allows you to bypass pressing the brake pedal to shift out of park. The key has to be on acc, and the shifter button still needs to be pressed. I have no idea how this mechanism detects the key is on acc when the battery is dead, which I thought was the primary use for the override button. I've seen many cars, such as hondas and volvo 460s which do not require you to press the brake pedal to shift out of park, hence they do not have an override button at all.

I had a pretty good understanding of everything shift lock when this thread started, but your question made me curious enough to dig in a bit further. I think this is the whole story:


In order to be able to depress the release button on the shifter knob, allowing movement out of the Park position, the following conditions must normally be met:

- battery charged sufficiently
- ignition switch in position II
- brake pedal depressed, and brake switch functional (brake lights coming on verifies this
- shift lock relay functional
- shifter Park position microswitch functional
- shift lock solenoid functional

Note that putting the ignition switch in position II causes 2 things to happen:
- switches through the necessary voltage to drive all the electrical functionality requred above
- releases a mechanical cable running from the ignition switch (4 in diagram) to the shift lock solenoid plunger, that would otherwise prevent any movement of the plunger.



If any of the above electrical components are not functioning correctly (battery, electrical contacts in ignition switch, brake pedal switch, shift lock relay, shifter Park position microswitch, shift lock solenoid, wiring), then the release button on the shifter will still not be able to be depressed with the ignition in position II and the brake pedal depressed.

In this situation, it is still possible to depress the release button on the shifter knob by meeting these conditions:
- ensuring that the ignition switch is in position II to release the otherwise mechanically restricted shift lock solenoid plunger
- pressing on the mechanical shift lock override button (5) to release a locking pin (3) on the shift lock solenoid

This allows the shift lock solenoid plunger to be effectively pushed back by the action of depressing the release button on the shifter knob, allowing movement out of the Park position.
--
David Armstrong - '86 240(350k km?), '93 940T(270k km), '89 240(parts source for others) near Toronto

To Mr. Wizzard and Dave:

You guys have hit the nail right between the eyes. And thank you Dave for going to the trouble to look up the matter in your owners manual. So the outcome is a happy one-the override is not broken, I just didn't know how it worked. I just dropped a new antenna mast in, and all I need is that little two pronged light bulb for the rear ash tray and my neurotic butt will be on the road at 100%. Merry Chrisatmas!

Len

I bought one of those little Blue bulbs a while back - had to get it from the dealer, as it's apparently unique to Volvo.

$14!!!! That's for one, uno, 1.

The one I needed, the bulb's leads are soldered to the metal connector plugs in the plastic holder, so it's not replaceable. I've pulled a number of the Blue bulbs - whether free-standing or in those holders - from the junkyard and the ratio of duds to good ones is about 10:1. I don't know what it is about the Blue dye - but it seems to kill bulbs fast.
--
Bob (son's 81-244GL B21F/M46, dtr's 83-244DL B23F/M46, my 94-944 B230FD and 89 745 (LT-1 V8); hobbycar 77 MGB, and a few old motorcycles)

Actually, I am also a bit neurotic with my Volvo, who isn’t? ;-)
I replaced the ashtray bulb with the backseat seatbelt reminder bulb, as it only comes on for a couple of seconds when the key is turned on. They were a direct swap, with no soldering or tampering required. This bulb not only lights the rear ashtray, but also the center console’s compartment! In my case, it stays ON as long as your headlights are on, so it creates a somewhat eerie glow to the backseat passengers at night. Once you remove the back ashtray panel, you could also adjust (if needed) your parking brake. It is a plastic nut that you turn by hand; never seen a car with such an easy and fast way to adjust the ebrake. If you can find the missing bulb, however, please let us know where!

Regards,
JGCBAIZ