Delica Canada | Mitsubishi Van Club

I think I have a problem with my automatic transmission gear position sensor switch. For some reason when it gets really cold (think Quebec winter) I do not get power to my starter. I have tried to adjust the cables on the shifter, and fiddle with the wires etc but I still haven't been able to solve the problem.

My gear position light on the dash does not correspond with the actual gear position and I think that this may indicate that the sensor (wherever the heck it is located) thinks that the van is in gear when I am trying to start it. What I want to do is short circuit this system somewhere so that I can get the van running. Does anyone know how I can bypass the neutral indicator switch

At present I am stuck in a parking lot far far from home. I need to fix this as quickly as I can.

Happy New Year

The only suggestion that I can give is to somehow heat the whole thing up. I've done this by opening the seat and put an electric heater pointed on the block/shifter area another pointing up on the oil pan from the bottom. 'seal' the lifted hood with a thin sheet to prevent the hot air from escaping and wait for the whole thing to get warm. Took me about 4 hrs using this method to de-thaw my engine to get it started at -25'C.

Might be helpful... :S

freestyler wrote:Took me about 4 hrs using this method to de-thaw my engine to get it started at -25'C.

Why were you trying to make it colder? usually at -25c I prefer to thaw things, or defrost them.

The thought of trying to warm up the transmission would be a challenge for any kind of heater. What I would like to do is find the wire that comes from the switch (located in the transmission) disconnect it and short circuit it. Any ideas?

Green1 wrote:

freestyler wrote:Took me about 4 hrs using this method to de-thaw my engine to get it started at -25'C.

Why were you trying to make it colder? usually at -25c I prefer to thaw things, or defrost them.

Using something inflammable? Or flammable....?
lol

Sorry for threadjack, I have no idea about the switch :^(

Ok I did it. I couldn't remove the neutral indicator switch (it was well stuck in place), but it did manage to connect the two largest black wires coming out of it. The result is hopefully a Delica that will start (or at least power the starter) in any gear regardless of the outside temperature...

lost1, PLEASE share your knowledge!

on the right side of the transmission you will find a wiring harness with at least 8 wires coming from it. The two thickest wires are the ones that will bypass the neutral switch. I connected all of them in one way or another and these were the only two that allowed the van to start so I bridged (as close as I could to the transmission) them with a short piece of wire and taped them up. Now the van starts no matter what. If you are interested pm me and I can take some pictures.

Here are a few pics.


This pic gives you an idea of the location
This pic shows you the two large wires (black w/ white and black w/yellow) that are spliced togther and amateurishly taped together. Ignore the other taped wires (blue and red) that are on the lower part of the pic. They were just part of the experiment

first off, thank you very much!
so if im understanding correctly the black/white and black/yellow wires are now connected before they reach the switch? are the return lines just open ended?

lost1 your my hero! worked like a charm!

No problem

Once again sorry for the delay with the pictures. Glad that it worked
Now if you would be so kind to help me find some solutions for my Unimog...
Lost1