Hi all. I have a 2006 IS250AWD with 225K kms (or 140K miles). My wife recently started having trouble shifting the car into gear. Today, it started not allowing her to go into P, D, or S and the Check VSC light has come on. Only after repeatedly moving the shifter was I able to get it into gear. And only after slamming it back.

It started with the car not seating into Drive (as if the shifter wouldn't slot into gear and would stay somewhere between Neutral and Drive). At that point, I could move it into S and back to get it to drive. The issue went away so I put it off and now two months later, this has occurred.

Has anyone seen or experienced this issue before?

Thanks. Any insight is much appreciated before taking this in to a dealer.

 

@Akhillese You may want to lift the car up on jack stands and take a look underneath at the transmission. This is very easy to do and could safe you cash and/or a trip to the stealership. There is a rod on the driver's side of the transmission that connects to a shift lever. The other end of the rod connects to the shifter inside the car. The shift rod can get bent and cause the transmission linkage to bind up when being shifted into gear. Also take a look at the cotter pin that connects the rod to the shift lever on the transmission. Rust can build up and corrode the pin causing it to break or seize up. It needs to move about freely when the shifter moves back and forth when selecting P,D,N,R. I'm not sure this is your problem, but it's worth taking a look. You can adjust that shift rod by bending it carefully and moving the lever it connects to back and forth by hand. Just make sure it moves back and forth easily when the shifter is moved inside the car. Maybe have a buddy help shift the lever inside the car while you watch the shift rod on the transmission. Just be safe and make sure the car is fully supported while you're underneath. I take no responsibility nor will be held liable for people's stupidity. Do this at your own risk!

 

@TopNotchIN Thanks for the guidance. I will see if I can get it up on the jack stands and inspect the rod today. I was thinking that maybe it's a fluid issue but I couldn't detect any leaks. I will take another look underneath to see if I can diagnose it before next week. Funny thing is we just got rid of our second car since only one of us drives to work now, so am under pressure to get this working reliably again!