neutral starting switch

[mercoupe50]

Whre is the neutral switch located on the transmission? Top? linkage? I think mine went belly up.:cry

 

[paul2748]

Its part of the shifter assembly.

 

[edmlynek]

well, i don't know exactly on a manual tranny, but on a an automatic, it is located with the floor shift assembly--you can get to it under the car, drivers side....it also incorporates the back-up lights switch - so you have 4 wires going to it--the two blue wires are the neutral start function--there is no start in 'PARK'---just neutral - but you can now buy one (for $10 more than a stock replacement) that has been modified internally to start in park or neutral..all the big t-bird venders have them in stock---($110.00 and $120.00)....make sure you have voltage to the switch with the key on....and you have not melted any wires cause they are close to the exhaust pipes.....two white wires are for the back-up lamps AND the switch is ADJUSTABLE---make sure it has not fallen out of adjustment......ed mlynek

 

[gbhrps]

mercoupe50,

I worked in a shop that specialized in small birds for a number of years, and we often found that the switches were either out of adjustment, or that the internal contacts were dirty. A clean up with spray contact cleaner and small brushes worked wonders after the switch was opened up. Good Luck!

 

[paul2748]

Does anybody realize that this question is over a year old?

 

[duffer]

How do you adjust the neutral safety switch? Is there a step by step process on line somewhere? Thanks guys.

 

[edmlynek]

adjusting neutral safety switch...this is hard to remember but i think there is a linkage piece that is threaded a long ways and has two nuts on it so moving the threaded nuts to the 'right' position will make switch work ok..now , remember you are ALSO adjusting the back up lights at the same time...now (this sorta doesn't apply to you), but when i converted my 55 bird to the 3 speed cruise-o-matic,(1962 trans from a y-block '62 galaxy convert.) i had a extra detent in the floor shift unit...and this 'messed up' completely the adjustment of the switch.. what i had to do was, modify the bracket holding the switch by elongating the 2 holes holding the switch. (you could now slide it to a different position so it would now work ok) AND i ground off all the detent stops in the floor shift unit so i could get all my tranny positions as they were all not in the right place anymore with the cruise-o....hope this helps you...bye ed mlynek e-mail me if you need more help

 

[paul2748]

Do you have a shop manual? I assume there is a procedure there.

If you don't have the manual, you should get one if you are doing work on the car yourself.

 

[duffer]

Thanks edmlynek for the info

And paul 2748 I do have the shop manual and the trans shop manual but could not find it in there. I was hoping maybe somebody here has done it before and might have paperwork or video . I was unsure if i could do it from the top because from the bottom looked like the trans would be in the way.
thanks for the help .
bob

 

[paul2748]

Here is a procedure that I found

Adjusting the Neutral Safety Switch
When making the adjustments, you may want to use
a multimeter. Set it to ohms + 1 so that when you
touch the leads together you get a full scale reading
or if the multimeter has a buzzer, you can use it to
check when the switch closes. When the switch
closes, you will get a full scale reading or a buzz.

Put the car on a lift or on jackstands so you can
easily get under the car.

Loosen the screws on the switch enough so you can
slide it but will stay where you put it. Use some
alligator clips with your meter leads and connect
them across the two center wires on the switch.
With the transmission in neutral, move the switch
until it closes and you get a full scale reading or a
buzz. Tighten the screws while watching the meter
to insure that the switch is still closed.

Follow the same procedure for the backup lights
with the ignition switch on and the transmission in
reverse. To check the backup lights you must
connect the meter to the other set of wires on the
switch that are used for the backup lights.

If you have trouble keeping the proper adjustment,
you may have a worn switch