Looking for help with 1996 Accord EX Auto 2.2l (F22B2) Canadian car.
I just bought this car and the shifter is extremely hard to take out of P, IOW - to shift from P to R.
R to N is also fairly sticky but not as much. All other transitions are fruid.
All tranny operations are good (shifting, kick-down...) are good and fluid is nice.
I removed the access plate on the tranny and removed the shifter cable and it is free.
The stickyness definitely seems to come from the inside of the tranny.
Yes I've checked the shift interlock solenoid and the shifter linkage and all is good.
I've had at least a dozen Gen5 Accords and although I've seen this problem at least 3 times before they were never bad enough to cause concern. This one is bad enough that my wife can't take it out of P without a helping hand.
I have the Honda shop manual for this model and it does not cover this.

Is there an easy fix for this?

Paul

 

'fluid is nice' doesn't equate to if you've changed the fluid and with what type of fluid.

Doing the drain and refill method with Honda ATF is what I would suggest doing to rule out any fluid issues.

 

It could be the shifter in the car. Remove access panel and clean. Might have sticky substance on the shifter?

 

Thanks for your reply MuffinMan. Are you suggesting that my problem would be solved if I simply change my fluid?
As stated, auto shifts and runs fine otherwise. My only problem is when I am standing still with the foot on the brake pedal and the engine idling, it is physically hard to shift from P to R and to a certain extent again from R to N. Once past these 2 spots I can go with ease from N to D4 and then back to N and even R. It is still hard to go back into P but not as hard.

 

Thanks for your reply 75aces. As stated originally, I have removed the access panel and removed the cable from the tranny and checked the shifter mechanism - all is good. Any ideas?

Paul

 

No, not suggesting it would completely solve it - there honestly is probably more to it, but was suggesting it would rule out any potential fluid issues if you used like a Valvoline Dexron ATF from Autozone or whatnot as this may hinder the transmission's ability to shift.

Another thought is taking a look at the brake light switch on the pedal. It definitely is a requirement to have it working to go from P to R - what happens when you insert a key into the slot by the shifter? Is it still difficult to shift it from P to R?

 

Thanks again. The shift interlock solenoid energizes when I press on the brake pedal and putting the key in the slot to bypass the interlock gives the same results. So we're back to the tranny itself. As I mentioned, this is my 3rd one with this problem so surely someone has seen this before. My local autotrans repair shop says that it is the P/R switch and that the parts are cheap and it is an easy fix and it will only cost me $1100 or so... he's probably one of those guys I see driving around in a new SUV lighting his cubans on a lit $100 bill. Back to you.

Paul

 

Personally, I've never heard of a P/R switch internal to the transmission......the only thing I could think of is the brake light switch - which detects if the brake pedal is pressed down and allows you to move the lever - certainly not $1100 to fix that......but if the solenoid is powered when you push the pedal then that would not be the issue.

I agree this does sound like a transmission issue though - which is beyond my knowledge