1997 Ford F-150: stuck in gear or won't shift

Filed Nov 14, 2016 · Transmission · OR

Linkage bracket broke wont shift completely into park wont strart I have looked this up and also the cruse control switch leaks brake fluid both of these have been recalled by ford but the dealership where I too it said my VIN # wasnt on recall list even though these are both admitted to be faulty by ford how can I get mine repaired.

Filed May 28, 2015 · Transmission · 300,000 miles · OK · crash

Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f-150. The contact stated that the vehicle would not shift into park and crashed into the neighbor's fence. There were no injuries and a police report was not filed. When the contact attempted to shift the vehicle into park, the vehicle would go into drive. The vehicle was not taken to a dealer or an independent mechanic. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 300,000.

Filed Jan 29, 2013 · Transmission · 86,000 miles · PA

Tl* the contact owns a 1997 ford f-150. The contact stated that the gear lever would not shift into park. To prevent the vehicle from rolling away, the parking brake was engaged in combination with a wheel block being placed in the front and rear of the vehicle. The vehicle had been repaired twice by a specialized transmission center at the owner's expense. On january 21, 2012, the failure recurred. The vehicle had not been repaired for the most recent failure. There was a recall associated with the federal safety agency campaign id number 97v171000 (power train) however, the recall campaign expired. The manufacturer was notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 86,000. ... Updated 02/28/13

Filed Mar 15, 2011 · Transmission · 112,000 miles · GA

Transmission failure, truck has 112000 miles and the tranny would not shift to 3rd gear, the fluid and filter has been change 5 times more than recommended by manufacturer, I also had aamco install a larger transmission cooler. What happened to the tranny is the c clamp that locks the main drive in the transmission came off, and destroyed the od drum and gears I have always kept my vehicles well maintained and at a cost of $1,900.56 I feel that ford should re imburse me for this , the truck has never hauled any heavy loads or pulling a trailer with anything heavier than a riding lawnmower. I have a 1970 ford truck that is a better truck than my 1997. I could only imagine what would happen to a new truck if driven like the commercials they produce. I have always been a ford man but they are changing my mind quickly. This truck has never been abused. It's absurd that a possibly $5.00 part could cause me almost 2 grand. I am about to buy a new truck and I will be shopping around and looking at consumer reports to make a decision.

Filed Jul 23, 2007 · Transmission · 112,500 miles · AZ

After stopping in driveway my 1997 f150, 4.6 l would not shift into park and the gear shift seemed to be looser than normal. As I tried several times to shift into park a 1 inch, brass, star head machined screw fell out from under the steering column. Also, the gear shift indicator came to rest between park and reverse. The engine would not start in this position, but did start in neutral. I had a difficult time finding reverse and drive, but once in gear the transmission sounds and runs normally. The safety implication of this problem is the unintended movement of the truck if the emergency brake is not set or defective. My research of the problem disclosed two related recalls of 1997 ford vehicles; campaign number 97v147000, september 9, 1997 and campaign number 97v171000, october 7, 1997. Both these recalls involved some facet of the transmission linkage between the steering column and the trasmission housing, just as mine did. On my truck there are two bolts securing the transmission selector lever arm and support to the steering column tube. The shift cable is attached to this arm. The top bolt came loose and fell out, while the second bolt was very loose, in fact, the whole arm was ready to fall out. This was the cause of my problem. The solution was to realign the selector lever arm and support to the shift tube and reinsert the two screws, after using a "loctite" compound.

Filed Aug 21, 2005 · Acceleration, Brakes · 94,200 miles · MO · fire

In feb./ 05 cruise control quite, mechanic couldn't find problem, aug 15/05 ABS light comes on. Thinking brake fluid is low, I pop the hood and notice plug on master cylinder is burned/melted. Car wont shift out of park, and no brake lights. I get a new plug and harness from dealer and replace blown fuse. I still have no cruise light on on dash but brakes and cruise work. Dealer said no recall but plenty of service bulletins. $15.00 part

Filed Aug 10, 2005 · Acceleration, Electrical · TX · fire

1.well first the cruise control on my 97 ford f150 went out. Then my brake lights went out too. Replacecd brake lights ,then fuse went out in interior fuse box so, truck would not go into gear. Replaced fuse then it blew it again. Replaced again truck could now shift into gear. I went home parked truck the truck in drive way and did not move it for the truck for the rest of the day. Was waken up about 3 in the morning by cops telling me my truck was on fire. The truck ended up burnt everywhere but the bed total loss pretty much un drivable. Burned a 95 caravan and part of a 2002 ford excursion. I know have I vehicle to move my kids that are in school and myself and my wife which also now has some serious nerve damage she has nightmares of other vehicle burning and can hardly sleep. Tried contacting ford but c.s. Department puts me on hold all day.

Filed Aug 8, 2005 · Acceleration · 135,000 miles · OK · fire · 1 injury

The federal safety agency: this is in relation to an under hood fire in a 1997 ford f150 pertaining to the speed control deactivation switch, brake pressure switch. On july 23, 2005 a neighbor came banging on my door yelling your truck is on fire. There was a fire coming out from under the hood where the brake master cylinder is located. The truck was parked in my drive under my carport and had been idle for approximately 2.5 hours. I ran to get my fire extinguisher and attempted to extinguish the fire. My neighbor called the fire department and then came out with another fire extinguisher. Another neighbor grabbed his extinguisher and gave it to me and that also failed. I grabbed my hose to try to minimize the fire until the fire department arrived. I only had on shorts (no shoes). I received several burns on the bottom of my feet the hole that was melted in the hood of the truck clearly shows where the fire was located. The day before that I had went to a mechanic to have my A/C looked at. The mechanic pointed out that brake fluid was leaking onto the speed control deactivation switch. On a ford recall web site it says the following signs could indicate that you have a problem with your cruise-control switch: cruise control is not working properly (mine recently stopped working); brake fluid leaking around the switch (exactly what the mechanic pointed out); fuses are blown near the switch, (that morning the truck would not go into gear and a mobile mechanic came out and he replaced the brake pressure switch fuse). Everything points to this problem with the speed control deactivation switch recall problem ford is having. I contacted ford to see if they wanted to investigate the situation and they said no and showed little to no concern.

Filed May 17, 2005 · Acceleration · 90,000 miles · IL · fire

Dt: the consumer owns a 97 ford f150 and the cruise control switch caught fire and burned the master cylinder and wiring harness at the switch. Also it blew a fuse in the circuit that kept it from burning further. When the consumer went to start the vehicle, it would not shift out of park because the ABS circuit was disabled. The consumer bought materials to repair the damage. After which ford had recalled later model pick ups. The consumer feels this is a wide spread problem and other years were affected also.

Filed Jan 7, 2005 · Electrical · 12,000 miles · FL · fire

Consumer shut the vehicle off and exited the vehicle. Later, consumer entered the vehicle. Turned the ignition on, and vehicle started but would not go into gear. Then, consumer exited the vehicle , opened the hood, and noticed there was a fire inside the hood. The defect was the cruise control relay. The fire was extinguished by the consumer.

Filed Oct 21, 2004 · Transmission · 80,000 miles · NY

The shifter cable was defective. It will not go into park and the consumer had to keep slamming it.

Filed Jun 13, 2002 · Transmission · TX

Intermittently the vehicle will not shift from park into gear. The dealer inspected vehicle. Please provide more information.