Now Part III in the sage of my 2012 Jeep Liberty: replacement of first remanufactured engine completed and seems to be running OK. But . . . periodically, there is a misalignment between the gear as indicated by the shift lever and what is illuminated on the dashboard . . . and what the car actually does. For example . . . shift lever to “2,” but “1” illuminated on dash. Or, “N” illuminated in dashboard, but vehicle in drive. I noticed when I picked up the vehicle that the shift lever was moving more freely than previously. Mechanic says he cannot replicate the problem, but wondering whether he adjusted the link cable b/c the shift lever now tighter. Yesterday, vehicle failed to start - no noise on crank, AAA guy looked at and said, “You’re not all the way in park.” Another moment this morning - shift to reverse, vehicle stays neutral. (1) is this a neutral safety switch issue? (2) transmission link cable issue? (3) bad electrical connection somewhere during engine install? (4) mechanical issue that was not adjusted properly after engine swap? Never had a problem until I picked the vehicle after the second engine install, but before I push the mechanic, I want to know what I am talking about.
Just tell the mechanic what is going on and see what he says . Then if he can solve this and everything looks and drives fine get rid of it.
When I wrecked my 1991 Jeep Cherokee in 2001 I was offered a Jeep Liberty as my rental. I had read a couple revues of the Liberty and declined. I ended up with a Pontiac Gran Prix which was at least OK.
Every car with an automatic has a way to adjust the relationship between the range indicator and the shift linkage. Not a neutral safety switch issue except that you can’t get the lever into the right position to close the circuit.
I don’t like the sound of the loose shift lever. Sounds like a quick and dirty install. If this was my car , I would be checking a lot of bolts myself.
Some neutral safety switches provide the computer w/all the shift lever positions. I’m guessing for a 2012 Liberty that’s the case. I expect the problem is that adjustment of that part and its linkage isn’t quite right yet.
So it seems to me that the neutral safety switch is doing its job by preventing the engine from starting when the vehicle is not in park. The problem is the misalignment between the shifter and another component.