Hi.

I have a 96 960 2.5 auto which has recently started misbehaving.

The symptoms are:

When pulling away, the gearbox seems to mis a gear/loose power between 1st and 2nd, it allways get there but is very annoying. Also (but not so often), when coming to a stop, the gearbox doesn't disengage the drive and brings the whole car to a shudder before returning to normal.

Someone told me that the lock up solenoid is causing these problems but would put the vote out to you experts first before attemting a repair.

oh, i forgot... last week i had to slide the gear lever back and forth a few times to get the car to start. Sounds like the start inhibitor swith is playinhg up to me ? wher is this located? on the gearbox or in the center console ??

Many thanks for any help


Jez Lewis

Did the check engine light or shift arrow come on at all when this happens?

You might have a problem with the Park nuetral position sensor(PNP Switch)

When there is a problem the car will ususally start out in 3rd gear.And will give you some problems starting sometimes.

The PNP switch is located on the side of the transmission.It slides onto the end of the selector shaft opposite side of the linkage.

Hi there.

No warning lights come on when this happens. There is no "check Engine" light on this (UK) model, so may need a OBD2 code reader to determine if any faults are stored in the ECU.

Is the PNP switch easy to do?

Jez Lewis

It is kind of a pain in the butt.Some people drop the exhaust system to replace it.But it can be done with out dropping the exhaust.You will also need to set the adjustment on the switch when you install it.

hi there,

have u checked ur gear oil? what color izzit? should be a light red if dropped on a tisu. I had a similar problem and the color was dark brown - caused by rust in the gearbox - had water in it.