I have a 2002 protege (automatic). This is my first car and i have to admit im a bit illiterate when it comes to these types of things. Well the problem that i have been having is with my gear shift. Sometimes when my car is in park the gear shift will not move. It usually happens when my car is not warmed up and it is kind of cold out (usually in the early mornings or evenings). Sometimes it takes 5 minutes before i am able to get the shift out of park. It happens quite a lot. If anyone has had this problem or knows what is causing it and what i need to do to fix it i would greatly appreciate any feedback. Thanks!

 

Hi Vicky,
That sounds like a very tricky problem. If you really want to attempt to diagnose and fix this yourself, follow the link below. It will take you to a chapter in the Mazda Workshop Manuel for your exact vehicle that shows you how to work on the automatic transaxle shift mechanism. If not, then take it to a competent mechanic ASAP, preferably a mechanic that specializes in Mazdas or Japanese vehicles.

http://protege5.ugly.net/05-18.PDF

By the way, I have a 2003 and mine is an automatic as well.

It just so happens that the entire Mazda Workshop Manual for the 2002 Protege is available in PDF (Acrobat) format at http://protege5.ugly.net/. I highly recommend that you save a copy of every section to your hard drive, as this will likely prove to be very helpful to you or other do-it-your-selfers who work on your car. These manuals are normally not available online to the general public and sell for $150 from the dealer.

Don
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I have noticed that if you park on a hill, curb your tires, it tends to be a little hard to get into gear.