This morning was very cold -4 with a serious wind chill. The gas pedal would not depress, so I examined the throttle cable to find that the transmission cable was stuck. I hand operated the throttle and the cable released but would not retract properly and all the way back in. Not knowing what do, I used some WD-40( probably not the best for sub zero weather) on the cable. It still wouldn't retract properly and is slightly drooping. Do I need to replace the cable or is there an easy fix? The car has 112,000 miles.

It sounds like the cable will retract a little, but not all the way. The best way to lube up the cable is to remove it from the throttle pulley and from the bracket that holds the kickown cable in place. Make a mark on the threads of the cable before you remove the nuts to designate the original position of the nuts that hold the cable to the bracket. Once that's done, hold the cable end up in the air and shoot some WD40 down the sheath. Push and pull the cable. If you can feel the cable start to free up, repeat this procedure until it snaps back after pulling it out. Reinstall the cable and adjust the nuts' positions as necessary.

It sounds like you will need to replace the cable sometime soon, but this may get you through to some warmer weather.

When my kickdown cable was stuck, I tried shooting lubricant down the cable with it mounted to the bracket. Most of the lube ran out onto the intake manifold. Definitely more of a pain to remove the cable, but more juice gets down into the sheath. Good luck

The cable is supposed to freely retract, even in the lovely weather you are getting. After awhile, these cables will start to stick due to wear and loss of lubricant. When this happens, upshifting will be greatly delayed. In extreme cases, upshifting will not happen at all. With the cable drooping as you describe, I am inclined to think you will not get an upshift. Hence, you will drive to work in only first gear. I had a similar problem with my '88 745T a couple years ago.

As for a solution, you are probably looking at a replacement. WD40 did not work, and I doubt another oil will not work. You need to get oil deep down into the cable in order for it to work. This is difficult to do. For now, you may have some improvement when the weather warms up and the stickiness deminishes. However, the ultimate solution is to have the cable replaced.

If you are you own mechanic, the cable runs about $90 from the dealer, plus tranny oil. While you are in there, you might as well replace the tranny oil filter and gasket if they have not been replaced yet. Replacing the cable is a bit of a pain, but doable. You need to drop the tranny pan, detach and remove the cable at both ends. Then install the cable. There is not a whole lot of room to work where the cable hooks up to the valve body in the tranny, but patience plus a book such as the Haynes manual will get you through it.

Good luck,