I installed the shift cable but cannot figure out how the cable goes onto the shifter. I was able to hoorup the three with the clips. How do I get it on? Do I use a a pair of plyers or just push it on? I tried pushing it on but it does not go on.
The shop manual advises using a pair of channel pliers. This DOES work. I tried regular pliers, c-clamps and sheer thumb pressure - none of those worked, but channel pliers DO.
The offset will allow you to position the grips around the cable endcap and lever ball in a way that you can apply the needed pressure to pop the cable end onto the ball joint.
My daughter's car recently had the cable end break loose while the highway. This cable design is NOT very good when it totally pops off and the driver loses shifter control. To prevent any future problems on my daughter's car, I added a metal bracket to keep the cable end in place should the plastic cap decide to break again in the future.
At a dealership price of $260 for the cable set, I really expected a better design. The parts counter guy told me the cable end cap seems to break a lot during hot weather. One would think Saturn would have improved this design, but why bother when there is a much better profit margin on replacement parts ?
When it come time to replace the Saturn, my daughter will NOT be getting another one due to this very bad shifter cable design - too much risk in getting into an accident when the cable breaks loose.
Regards,
Ralph
Bob_>
My daughter had a similar experience. I can't believe that it's necessary to replace the entire cable assembly due to premature failure of a small plastic grommet. The Saturn parts department dismissed my complaint by saying that failure generally occurs after 100,000 miles. But mine failed after only 57,000 miles. Is there an after-market solution available that would allow replacement of the plastic grommet only?
My daughter had a similar experience. I can't believe that it's necessary to replace the entire cable assembly due to premature failure of a small plastic grommet. The Saturn parts department dismissed my complaint by saying that failure generally occurs after 100,000 miles. But mine failed after only 57,000 miles. Is there an after-market solution available that would allow replacement of the plastic grommet only?
More cases of this problem posted here:
- Cable tie "zip straps"
- Drill out ball and replace with bolt
- Ace Hardware MP6258 plastic snap-in bushing
Couldn't get the suggested MP6258 bushing from Ace Hardware (actually a
5/8" nylon hole plug) to work -- too short. Fixed the problem by drilling and tapping a small hole into the exposed end of the steel ball, and re-inserting the original rubber grommet (both pieces, as it was broken in half). Then, through a hole punched in the exposed end of the grommet, secured with a screw through a large metal washer into the tapped hole. Now, even if the grommet deterioates, the shifter cable won't come loose.My failed too.
I fixed it as follows:
Drilled a hole in the ball. Slipped cable over ball Screwed a sheet metal screw with LARGE washer to hold the cable on.
It has been working for two years now.
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