72 Supreme, the console shifter will operate the transmission from Park through all the gears down to Low, however, it will not upshift or move the transmission at all or back up to Park. I have to manually move shift bracket/handle on the side of the trans to shift the trans back to park.

I have use of a rack but am by myself so I can't operate the shifter to see what is happening underneath. What could be wrong? Another question I have is what does the shifter cable do and what does the shift linkage that connects from the steering column to the shift shaft besides lock the trans in Park?

 

The cable moves the gear selector ear on the side of the transmission.
The backdrive linkage moves the collar on the steering wheel for the Park/Lock feature. This linkage is the same for a column shift car.

 

Thanks Fun 71.

So the linkage on the column is only for the column lock and the cable does all the shifting? The cable doesn't feel rigid enough to have a pushing effect to upshift.

 

Yes, the cable controls the upshift and downshift. The backdrive linkage actuates the lock function and also the neutral safety switch that is mounted on the column.

 

 

Thanks for the tips. This happened after I installed a shift shaft seal with no problem thats why I'm scratching my head.