My girlfriend has an automatic 1998 Honda Accord. Recently, she discovered that she does not have to press the button on the shifter in order to change gears. It will literally just slip from D4 to D3, or D4 to N, without pushing the button in at all. It cannot go into reverse in this way (I’m assuming reverse lock-out?) but it will go from reverse to neutral… you can see why this would be a cause for concern. I wanted to know what the culprit could be, before I start digging into this thing and trying to figure out. Would it most likely be something inside the shifter itself / the button mechanism? When I press the button, it pushes in/out, and feels no different than it should. Thanks for any insight.

 

Its 100% normal to be able to switch from D3 to D4 to Neutral. Reverse is locked, and gear 2 and 1 are locked.

 

Even without pushing the button at ALL? I mean, I can literally push gently with my pinky and cause it to shift gears. I can only imagine an accidental arm bump or something going down the road..

 

Maybe not that loose, you DO NOT need to push the button what so ever in these three modes though. In almost all automatic transmission cars you are at least able to shift between drive and neutral easily with no button-press. Its a safety feature if the car revs/speeds up uncontrollably.

 

Thank you for putting my mind at ease. I don't think this situation could have turned out any better! Thanks again