89 900 turbo stuck in reverse

[chazly83_300D]

Recently moved into a new place and the landlord has an old Saab he said I could fix if I wanted it so I figured I'd take a stab at it.

The car has been sitting for quite a few years and he's very foggy as to what was wrong with it. I found that everything turns on and all the lights light up and the starter will engage but the transmission is stuck in reverse and the clutch has no resistance at all. Not sure if the clutch has anything to do with it not going out of reverse or if it's a linkage problem. Anyone know what the problem might be? Have tried to shift it with the key on.

[jskrebs]

Try rocking it while in reverse and nudge the shifter?

[euromobile900]

Where in Vermont are you? If you're in the Burlington area, I could stop by and apply my knowledge...

Even if you are in Waterbury or something, I might be able to stop by on my way through at some point.

If you can't get it out of reverse by rocking and nudging the shifter, as J.S. Krebs says to do, you could also try investigating a possible malfunction of the shifter reverse lockout, locking you IN to reverse. It's far-fetched, but possible. Or maybe motor mounts. Or (extremely far-fetched) the car, having sat for a few years, is sunk into the ground or corroded up enough that the shifter shaft has seized.

The way to get your clutch back will probably involve bleeding the system, at least. At most, you will need a new master, slave, and hydraulic hose. If the clutch hydraulics have gone, I would also suspect the brakes of containing dubious hydraulic components.