festiva down need help!!

[(90festivalx)]

Went to start my festiva...the lights on the dash showed up turned the key to the run position and nothing ...it has done this a few times to me but i just put it in neutral and it would start but tonight it wouldnt come out of park...any ideas???? by the way tonight it was raining which ended up freezing dont know if that takes a part in my problem the engine wont turn over at all....

Plus my car will be in the drive postion and i can slip into neutral without pushing the shifter button is this normal??? sometimes i think it kinda jumps into neutral...the engine reves but doesnt pull but appears to be in drive....so i put in neutral then back in drive and its back to normal....

[batstiva]

Given the symptoms, and the fact that your sig says your tranny is going, and the free play in your selector, I'm wondering if when it has the starting problem, you're not actually all the way in park, even tho the selector appears to be in park. Pulling it down in neutral temporarily resolves this issue. As to not being able to move the selector now, could be frozen, could be whatever was keeping it from going all the way into park is now stuck. I suspect at the moment, you are kind of suspended between Park and Reverse.

I've seen a couple of auto Aspires that refused to go out of park below a certain temperature. Had to pop the repo switch to get the cars out of park. Never had experience with an auto tx Festiva. Can anyone who has say if there is a repo switch on the auto tx Festivas?

[Festiva_tunner]

sounds like your neutral safety switch is not engaging - might be because of a sloppy shifter.

[(90festivalx)]

are there any ways to correct that or should i just start looking for parts to do a manual swap? i know i cant stop the trans from slipping other than a complete rebuild...if i do a manual swap does it matter if the donor car has a carb or does it have to have an efi engine.....

[Festiva_tunner]

If your trans is slipping you may just consider the swap - you can keep it auto if you check your neutral switch and eventually rebuild or replace the auto trans.

IF your swaping the Trans for a manual a carbed will come with a 4spd and the EFI will be a 5spd - (There are certain cases with different trim packages where this will be different) All auto cars were EFI though.

[(90festivalx)]

I should have said that different i ment would a tranny from a car with a carb cause any problems with ecu since i have an auto with efi going to a manual with a carb...

[(90festivalx)]

Well other than the tranny slipping and the loose shift linkage thats been acting up....my battery terminals needed cleaned so i cleaned them then she fired right up but im sure ill still have to put it in neutral a few times still....

[muscle_Car1]

IF your swaping the Trans for a manual a carbed will come with a 4spd and the EFI will be a 5spd - (There are certain cases with different trim packages where this will be different) All auto cars were EFI though.

Yeah like the carbed LX's had 5 speeds

[batstiva]

I should have said that different i ment would a tranny from a car with a carb cause any problems with ecu since i have an auto with efi going to a manual with a carb...

If you are asking whether just swapping the tranny from a carbed to EFI car will bother the ECU, the answer is no. But if you are going to swap to a carbed engine and tranny, then yes you will have to change the ECU for the carbed motor. But if you're going to stay FI, but use the tranny from a carbed car, that won't matter. Is that what you're asking?

[(90festivalx)]

thats wat i was trying to ask......so now another problem has came around....for the longest time i didnt have heat so i put a thermostat in it now i have heat but when it gets up to operating temp the radiator starts to smoke im thinking it has a small hole and its burning it...any suggestions?

[mechanicaldj]

as for the transmission jumping out of drive into neutral......

have you checked your engine/trans mounts lately??????????

if the stick physically jumps into neutral

[batstiva]

No chance you've got the thermostat in there backwards?
You could always drain and pull the rad. Seal the openings, and immerse it in water. If you get bubbles, you've got a leak.

[Papabug]

The "smoke" could be steam? If you splashed coolant on the radiator while installing the thermostat it will steam until the residue cooks off.

[(90festivalx)]

im pretty sure that the thermostat is in right the car doesnt over heat...I think that it is steam is it possible that my rad.. cap is weak letting steam pour out of the rad.....I know i spilled anti-freeze on the radiator i have been driving it for a few days now and when the temp gauge reads slightly under half way it starts to steam/smoke....I was looking under the hood while the engine was up to operating temp and I was waiting on the fan to kick on but it never did...the owner before me had told me that the fan ddnt work so i had jumped the fan relay and it kicked on...while i was messing with the fan I got a random idea to turn the ac on...when i kicked the ac on the fan turned on by now the engine had cooled off...I turned the ac on and off with the ignition on but the engine was not running and the fan kicked on and off so i dont know if the owner before me had messed with the wiring or what i thought this was strange...any ideas?

[(90festivalx)]

And about the tranny jumping into neutral the shifter doesnt physically move but the engine revs but doesnt pull this has done it once... and it was a day or two before i couldnt get my car to start...