Problem putting truck (automatic) into park

In the last few days when I go to put my truck in park, the shifter (I'm probably using the wrong name) is getting stuck on something and it's preventing me from removing my key from the ignition. I'll turn the truck back on and put it in drive then back into park and then I'm ok but something is either stuck in there or broken. Is this something the dealership can only fix or is there a way to easily remove something on my console to see if something may have fallen into that area and have it removed? Now keep in mind, I'm a rookie at fixing anything on my truck so please be gentle when I ask questions that might seem dumb.

 

This is a diagnostic for a sticky shifter .Not the same issue you have but falls into the same category and deals with most of the components that your are having problems with . Have you ever lubed your ignition system ?
STICKY SHIFTER / SHIFTER IS HARD TO MOVE
Most of us would disconnect the shifter cable from the transmission lever and then verify the cable is free by hopping in the truck and moving the shifter from park to low . We should feel nothing because the shifter cable is no longer connected to the transmission . If the shifter is still tight to move , we know that the issue resides in the cable or the plastic shifter cover . A quick lube job is going to fix that up .

Next , with the shifter cable removed from the transmission lever , try and manually move that transmission lever by hand . You should feel click , click , click and it should be fairly easy to move with your hands . If you cant move it by hand , remove the PRNDL switch shown on page 16 at this link , it shows the switch in question . Spray the heck out of it . Some guys actually have to replace the PRNDL switch becuase of corrosion .The PRNDL switch gets very tight when it corrodes http://www.toyotatundraforum.com/pdf/A750E.pdf

When the switch is removed , you can spray the seal on the transmission that sits behind the switch to see if there are additional problems with the lever shaft since the lever shaft is also known to corrode .
, then take a small screwdriver and pry the lever seal away from the shifter selector shaft enough to blast some lubricant between the seal until you get the lever to move by hand .Might have to work it back and forth a little but its going to free up . You should have the wheels blocked when you do this .Both of these issues are very common

Next , place the transmission gear shifter in park and " REMOVE THE KEY "
Throw the key on the drivers seat until your done .
Go to rear of truck and manually push it by hand to verify the truck is actually in park . Go back under the truck and check to see if the shifter cable lines up perfectly with the hole in the transmission lever . If it doesnt line up , adjust the shifter cable until it fits perfectly into the transmission lever . The adjustment is under the shift counsole .
Once the cable is aligned with the transmission shift lever , verify the truck will only start in park and nuetral .

This covers any normal shifter cable and alignment issues .

Now you know the shifter is free with the truck in the off position .
Now , start the truck and verify you can smoothly shift through all the gears . Has the shifter freed up or is it still really tight ?

If its still tight with the engine running , remove all ground straps and clean them spotless . Add additional ground straps if you please .
I have seen vehicles catch on fire for this very reason .
When the ground wires on circuits get old and corroded , they no longer function properly and loose contact with ground . Guess what your shifter cable just became ? The ground wire from your transmission to the vehicle body .
I have replaced many melted shifter cables . The shifter cable becomes the vehicles ground and the plastic outer shield will actually melt to the inner cable . This is more noticeable on todays vehichles with all the fancy control motors and electronics as they draw much more amperage in comparison to older cars and trucks . With the non metal box on our trucks all we have is the frame and truck cab to rely on for our grounding needs .
A little sand paper used to clean those ground straps usually fixes the problem but you can always add a couple more straps to be safe . Some guys are too late and the cable is fried . Some guys replace the cable without replacing or cleaning the grounds only to have the same issue again .

 

Holy shitballs Batman come again???!!! Umm, wow, I'm even more lost. I think I'll take it in to Toyota...

 

nice post!!!

 

Sounds like your shifter cable is out of adjustment
Easy fix
place the transmission gear shifter in park and " REMOVE THE KEY "
Throw the key on the drivers seat until your done .
Go to rear of truck and manually push it by hand to verify the truck is actually in park . Go back under the truck and check to see if the shifter cable lines up perfectly with the hole in the transmission lever . If it doesnt line up , adjust the shifter cable until it fits perfectly into the transmission lever . The adjustment is under the shift counsole .
Once the cable is aligned with the transmission shift lever , verify the truck will only start in park and nuetral .

In case you havnt removed your cousnole yet and you beleive there is something stuck in there , it comes off very easy .

 

Ok, that's a little more understandable. If I want to check to see if something is stuck do I just pop off the cover part of it?? When I move my gear into park and when I downshift from D to 4 it's giving me the same problem, so it's only when it moves to the left. I've been setting my emergency brake just in case it isn't actually in a "true park". I appreciate your response and I'll check that out!

 

Unscrew the shifter and the counsole pops off .
Here is a little write up with some pictures . Sounds like you may need some lubrication in there .
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd-gen-tacomas/57895-center-console-removal-w-pics.html

 

Well shifter started giving me a problem going into drive and made this loud sound. It really felt like something was blocking it. After a few stops, I put it into park and sure enough the culprit came up through the hole where the metal part of the shifter goes down into the console! It was the hard rubber piece (that serves no purpose) and it shifted somehow inside there, blocking the shifter. Once that sucker popped up through that hole, problem was gone. I left it hanging on there for a day to be sure I didn't really need it and my truck ran and shifted fine. Used my pocket knife to cut it off! Thank goodness I didn't have to bring it in to the dealership! Thanks for the help guys!