How a Car Shifter Works

Here's a look inside an automatic transmission shifter mechanism and how it works!
The shifter mechanism is responsible for controlling the cable going to the transmission, providing interlock between gears, inputting the gear position into the vehicle's CANBUS system, selecting the intended gear in manual mode and notifying the driver what gear the vehicle is selected in.
Inside, there are multiple pivot points - one to disengage the selector for manual mode, one main one for the PRND function, and one to pivot the shifter to the side for manual mode. It's made up of a series of small mechanisms, such as little arms that move out of the way to disengage the lever, the shift lock out mechanism, a parking lock solenoid, spring loaded detents and an electronic circuit board that will receive all the inputs from the mechanical components.
This shifter came out of a 2006 Volkswagen Jetta TDI with a dual clutch automatic transmission.
Toyota Corolla automatic transmission shifter:
• How a Shifter Works
Infiniti G35 automatic transmission shifter:
• How a Shifter Works
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[@mantatrip9319]

I'm very confused, not sure what to look at. Please show important things with a toothbrush!

[@donvoll2580]

Ha ha ha from Waterloo Ont.

[@speedkar99]

Will do for future videos

[@maikelnait4495]

😂😂

[@johnw3379]

I love how you deal with all of the random fasteners!

[@speedkar99]

Zip! Love my angle grinders

[@shazam6274]

Ah, yes, the universal screw head and size feature is the best!

[@Fireneedsair]

Fantastic as usual

[@speedkar99]

Thanks!!

[@maikelnait4495]

And that’s one of the reasons why I drive a manual. I could never fix this contraption in the video🤯

[@speedkar99]

Hey I should take apart a manual shifter to show the difference. Good idea

[@maikelnait4495]

That’s like a 2 minute video, or?🤔

[@justanatom4072]

Makes me wonder how any of us survived the era of manual transmissions!

[@speedkar99]

Haha

[@kristianhermann5971]

Cool - more complex than I expected - interesting getting gear position signals from the shifter and not the transmission, like other designs - probably a more hospitable envt for electronics

[@speedkar99]

I think most cars have the sensor on both the cable and transmission...

[@amarabdelli487]

Great video thanks for sharing

[@speedkar99]

Welcome

[@YanDoroshenko]

That was very insightful, thank you. I have this exact system though not in VW Jetta.

[@speedkar99]

What car do you have?

[@YanDoroshenko]

@@speedkar99 Audi A4, 2008.

[@ginog5037]

Excellent video! Can it possibly be anymore complicated?

[@auntbarbara5576]

Right? Thought same, designed-to-fail💰💰 Remember when we drove 'three on the tree'? Easy-peezy 👌🏽

[@speedkar99]

Yes! Alot of shifters are just as complex!

[@user-rc4oi2fm9m]

such a genious

[@terrienhumain6723]

Thank you.

[@speedkar99]

Welcome

[@petergreen5337]

❤Thank you very much

[@speedkar99]

You're welcome 😊

[@olspanner]

Who said modern cars are too complex?????? A believer in the KISS principal !!! . lol

[@speedkar99]

Same here

[@thecriss88]

this channel must be a secretly sponsored by Makita

[@speedkar99]

I use Miluakee

[@totalrecone]

Complexity is the enemy of reliability.

[@speedkar99]

Yes

[@farisrc8647]

dude you awesome

[@speedkar99]

Thanks

[@SmokeDogNY420]

8:35 MacGyver could have that mess fixed with some fishing line in under a minute

[@speedkar99]

That would be cool

[@greathey1234]

A million things can go wrong.

[@speedkar99]

Yeah and this is only the shifter... imagine the rest of the car

[@KLMAviation_]

Like the handbrake, odometer. Yeah. ​@@speedkar99

[@michaelbezoski3096]

Always good to share the white atmospheric deposits with my neighbor to the north. If that unit needs to be dropped down rather than pulled up does that include removing the transmission in any way? Kinda risky having electronics close to cup holders for a klutz like me. Looks rather inexpensive, right. As always, exceptional video on yet another brain in an automobile.

[@speedkar99]

Actually yes it gets removed from.below. That entails removing the exhaust and heat shield. That's crazy!!

[@shazam6274]

Amazingly complex, with many little parts to assemble ! You didn't point out the little coocoo bird and chime though. Since it is so easy to fix and remove, service should be a breeze, even without that nifty rotary, any head style, any size screw removing tool you have there. Farfegnugen !

[@speedkar99]

Love my grinders!

[@JohnDoe-gj4dv]

Sir ..... Would you please ADD A BLOWTORCH AND A CHAINSAW TO YOUR DISASSEMBLY REPATOIR ........... Thank you for your VIDEOS..........

[@speedkar99]

That would be entertaining. I love my grinder though

[@Aleks_Mechanics]

Notification Squad!🔥🔥🔥

[@speedkar99]

Thanks

[@Iowa599]

use a unibit the rivets (in a drill)

[@speedkar99]

Grinder faster

[@Iowa599]

@@speedkar99 I guess it doesn't matter when its all trash.

[@liver.flush.maestro]

Odd there are both a position cable going to the transmission and another position sensor in the shifter, seems redundant to me.

[@speedkar99]

Redundancy is the key to reliability

[@liver.flush.maestro]

@@speedkar99 Sure, but you need 3 inputs, there are only 2, what decision you make if one says Drive and other Neutral? If you implement proper HA, you need 3 to allow disambiguation with 2 that say the same thing and the 3rd "something else". Then you know the "something else" is wrong.

[@csgarage3682]

So what would happen if I shift to P or R with car moving at 60 kph (Canadian heyy)?

[@speedkar99]

Nothing. This transmission is electronically controlled and would have logic to block that. Even if it was manually controlled, the engine would just stall.

[@blackindian9554]

Can u do a Vezel review plz

[@The10cmorgan]

What would happen if you were driving and your shifter went to reverse would it destroy the transmission?

[@mantatrip9319]

There should be prevention by speedometer, but please, can you prove this theory?

[@RDEnduro]

If you actually get it to engage ya it could, or lock up tires and you crash. Hard to do on late models they wont let it happen.

[@johnw3379]

I believe that is called "the money shot"

[@tonyl7286]

It probably will in older cars but don't modern cars (anything in the past decade) have lockouts for that?

[@abdul-kabiralegbe5660]

​@@johnw3379 * shift.

[@abdul-kabiralegbe5660]

This looks like a jigsaw puzzle.The electronic shifters are far less complex with lesser number of parts. And probably easier to troubleshoot too.

[@speedkar99]

It sure is mechanically simpler but I'm not sure about that troubleshooting part...

[@SureShot_2]

Where the 3rd Gen Lexus GS350 from the thumbnail?

[@speedkar99]

It's my GS350. Ive had a few videos on it over the years, it's been a really good car.

[@ccshello1]

Fortunately or unfortunately, this complex mechanism is not designed by Computer Engineers, or a fancy Glass Cockpit will be created with an AI wizard behind the scene doing the magic adjustment (in the name of fine tuning to please the customer) on occasion.

[@speedkar99]

Mechanical engineering 💪💪

[@steelshepherd6843]

Wow, I hate them even more now. I miss my manual e30 and e46 more every day...

[@speedkar99]

Indeed a very complex design

[@andrewsmactips]

Cold enough to snap my brother's toothbrush.

[@speedkar99]

It sure was cold!

[@orac229]

Explains why cars are so expensive

[@speedkar99]

Big time. Imagine a team dedicated to making a shifter

[@_viy]

No Tesla’s so far?)

[@speedkar99]

No

[@glock18supercharger]

✌️😁

[@speedkar99]

👌

[@transmitterguy478]

That thing is more complicated than the engine itself! I bet the cost of that is $80 or $90 LOL.🤣🤣🤣 Wops I mean $800 or $900.

[@speedkar99]

Yeah it looks expensive

[@dantevito1193]

Why does it even have a mechanical link? The transmission is electronically controlled anyways Also, and totally unrelated, why do automatics have a "park" function? Why not just a normal hand brake (that at least _some_ automatic cars have too)?

[@speedkar99]

There are parts in the valve body that are controlled by the bimanual valve. See my DSG teardown video

[@olafzijnbuis]

OMG... All this complicated stuff to replace common sense. I am so happy to have a manual 5-speed transmission in my car.

[@speedkar99]

You sure are lucky of the last bunch

[@jonnycando]

The use of a circuit board for position sensing makes the whole thing much too complex and too quickly failed😮

[@speedkar99]

It sure is complex!

[@teamawesome2171]

Vws.... Avoid...

[@floyddwayneviernum3816]

So overly complicated.

[@speedkar99]

Surprisingly alot of shifters are just as complex

[@geriatricprogrammer4364]

So much plastic parts. Good for the spares department bad for your wallet.

[@speedkar99]

Yes it doesn't need to be metal though

[@anubaral]

gonna release this plastic here 🤣, my mom had a car with a automic transmission, the transmission was worth more than the whole car... get a automatic, if it breaks you can scrap the whole car, manual is better

[@speedkar99]

True

[@_Nobody_Special]

Over-engineered junk.

[@speedkar99]

Surprisingly alot of shifters are this complex!

[@schifoso]

What's that white stuff on the table? Love, Vancouver

[@speedkar99]

In Toronto we have snow. 🙂 In Vancouver you've got rain.