C5 Shifter Drive Detent not working
I'm fixing up a C5 to give to my father for father's day this year. Lots of little cosmetics to clean up and one particular driving irritation.
The automatic shifter **** detent in Drive is broken.
When I shift out of Park I pull straight down and it goes all the way to first gear. I can feel the gears very softly, but where the detent should click into Drive and stay there unless I push the button again, it does not.
Other functions work correctly, have to push the button to get it out of park, have to push the button again to go into Reverse and into Park, etc, just no detent in Drive.
Is there an easy fix for this?
Thanks,





I was tinkering around with it today.
The shifter can be moved out of park or into any gear with the car off, the parking brake not depressed, or the button pushed because the shifter isn't connected to anything in that whole mechanism.
The key lock works - the locking mechanism won't unlock if the key isn't turned, BUT - the shifter isn't connected to the locking mechanism.
The brake pedal lock works - the locking mechanism won't unlock unless the brake pedal is depressed as well, BUT, again, the shifter isn't connected to that locking mechanism, either.
The button in the top of the shifter does not appear to be connected to anything and the linkage that looks like it's supposed to ride inside a plastic limiter is popped way up above the locking mechanisms or the channel where they all look like they should interconnect.
I have a replacement shifter inbound. It'll be interesting to take pictures of them side by side. Unfortunately the button portion of the assembly that you depress to take it in and out of gear does not appear to be a serviceable part. By anyone. If that button breaks I see no way to repair the entire assembly at all.
I'm not impressed by the change in design over the C4 shifter.
Last edited by LeeMajors; May 13, 2020 at 08:59 PM.
By the looks of it they were neglecting it a bit, needs a lot of little stuff. Need to find the panels to the left of the steering wheel BEHIND the kick panel that the kick panel bolts to. Whatever plastic is behind it that the spring clip goes into is completely missing.
Here's the video, shows the little c-clip from the FRONT of the bottom of the shifter ****. Hadn't thought to look there.
The Best of Corvette for Corvette Enthusiasts
I ordered a replacement shifter and started looking at them side by side. There is a silver cross-bar (aluminum) that connects the bottom of your shifter **** arm to the lockout plastic piece on the left and the shifter slider on the right so they can all move as one assembly.
Someone has removed the one on mine. The one in the replacement is in there HARD, can't even budge it, so I'm assuming it was done deliberately, possibly for racing purposes, who the heck knows.
I'm going to 3D print one on the Mark Forged to see if I can fix the one that's still in the car so I don't have to waste a bunch of time fooling with a shifter replacement. I'll upload some pictures in a bit.
How they got it out is a mystery.













