'92 Ford Escort Wagon LX Key/ Shifter problems
 

Hi.

Just acquired this vehicle for a great price, second hand.

Problem -the key gets stuck in the ignition when you try to turn the car off, the key turns the engine off, however, even in the ' off ' position, the electric system stays engaged for the most part, as the temp and fuel gauges go to their approximate levels, and not to their default ' resting' positions. The shift lever is clearly in park. Also, I find that the shift lever easily jumps from gear to gear when i'm sliding it up and down, without the little ' handle gear lock' button being pressed in, so I am unsure if this is an issue with the lever itself or the ignition cylinder. For now i disconnected the battery as to not drain it and shops are trying to charge me 200 bucks to look it at. checked tranny fluid and its fine

Could someone help figure this out?

Thanks

Make any progress on your problem? I have a manual trans, so my experience will be a little different than yours. I had a '94 Escort w/auto trans about four years ago.

I don't remember if I could turn the key to the off position with the Trans in Drive position. It sure seems like there is an issue with the ignition switch though if you can turn it to off and power is still at the gauges, etc.

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There was an issue with the ignition cylinder, once I replaced that all was good, cept now i'm dealing with an engine rebuild