[W126 Coupe] 7" of play in park

[FPecar4525 at aol.com]

In a message dated 9/14/2009 11:43:58 A.M. Pacific Daylight Time,  
560secfl at gmail.com writes:

Ok 
sorry


Here's a very good explanation of the parking pawl and it's use in  an 
automatic transmission.
 
 
A parking pawl is a device fitted to a _car_ 
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automobile) 's _automatic  transmission_ 
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_transmission)  that locks up the transmission. It is engaged when the 
shift  selector is placed in the Park position, which is always the first  
position (topmost on a column shift, frontmost on a floor shift) in all cars  
sold in the _United States_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States)  
since 1965  (when the order was standardised by the _SAE_ 
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Society_of_Automotive_Engineers) ) and  in most other vehicles 
worldwide. 
The parking pawl locks the transmission's output shaft to the  transmission 
casing by engaging a pawl (a pin) that engages in a notched  wheel on the 
shaft, stopping it (and thus the driven wheels) from turning. 
Most manufacturers and mechanics do not recommend using the transmission's  
parking pawl as the sole means of securing a parked vehicle, instead  
recommending it should be engaged after first applying the vehicle's _parking  
brake_ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parking_brake) . Constant use of the 
parking pawl only, especially when parking on a  steep incline, means that 
driveline components are kept constantly under stress,  and can cause wear and 
eventual failure of the parking pawl or transmission  linkage. The pawl might 
also fail or break if the vehicle is pushed with  sufficient force, if the 
parking brake is not firmly engaged. Replacement can be  an expensive 
operation since it generally requires removing the transmission  from the car. 
It highly inadvisable to use the parking pawl to stop a vehicle in motion.  
The pawl mechanism is not strong enough to stop a vehicle in motion or may 
not  engage at all. Under that much stress, the pawl may break off in the  
transmission, leading to costly repairs. 
Retrieved from "_http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parking_pawl_ 
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parking_pawl) "

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