# Getting a car to the garage **URL:** \ **Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\ **Tags:** transmissions, protege, mazda\ **Created:** [November 5, 2009, 1:32pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/getting-a-car-to-the-garage/39053 "2009-11-05T13:32:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![superstar4.22](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b19c9b/32.png) [@superstar4.22](https://community.cartalk.com/u/superstar4.22)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 1:32pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/getting-a-car-to-the-garage/39053/1 "2009-11-05T13:32:47Z")
I have a 1996 Mazda Protege w/approx. 60,000 miles on it. In July, the gear shift cable broke and my garage estimated that it would cost roughly $550 to repair. I thought that was rather steep and declined to fix it at the time. It has been sitting idly in my driveway since. I have now found another mechanic (about 30 miles away) and want to get the car back on the road. I need to get my car to him and can’t afford to have it towed. This past July, when I initially called to have the car towed to the garage, the tow-truck driver had me pop the hood. He did something to get the car in gear and I was able to drive the car to the garage. Can someone tell me what he did/pulled/adjusted in order to get the car in driveable condition? I know very little about cars, but think I could do this with some guidance. Any help is appreciated. ---
**Author:** ![VDCdriver](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/vdcdriver/32/30_2.png) [@VDCdriver](https://community.cartalk.com/u/VDCdriver)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 1:38pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/getting-a-car-to-the-garage/39053/2 "2009-11-05T13:38:42Z")
The tow truck driver apparently hand-moved the linkage very close to the transmission, thereby by-passing the broken part of the cable. However, without the ability to post a diagram, it would be difficult for me to adequately describe this to you. Perhaps someone else can attach a link to a specific page from a Haynes repair manual for you. ---
**Author:** ![andrew\_j](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/91b2a8/32.png) [@andrew\_j](https://community.cartalk.com/u/andrew_j)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 2:03pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/getting-a-car-to-the-garage/39053/3 "2009-11-05T14:03:03Z")
30 miles is a long way to drive a car with a non-drivable condition and little knowledge. You don’t specify if manual shift or automatic, if manual I would not attempt this as whatever “fix” will work itself loose over that distance. If automatic maybe then attempt it. ---
**Author:** ![mcparadise](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/mcparadise/32/32_2.png) [@mcparadise](https://community.cartalk.com/u/mcparadise)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 2:19pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/getting-a-car-to-the-garage/39053/4 "2009-11-05T14:19:25Z")
If you drove the car to a garage in July (after the tow truck driver manually selected “Drive” at the transmission), then drove it home again, shouldn’t it still be in gear? ---
**Author:** ![Whitey](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/whitey/32/24680_2.png) [@Whitey](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Whitey)\ **Post date:** [November 5, 2009, 3:10pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/getting-a-car-to-the-garage/39053/5 "2009-11-05T15:10:25Z")
If he is still in gear, it how will the OP start the engine? Do you have a friend with a full-sized pick-up truck or dually? If so, you could rent a tow dolly from U-Haul.