Why won't my Saab 900 go into reverse? It goes into first-fifth gear just fine.

Answer by  joecool (7)

When your car does not go into reverse, this is a tell-tale sign of transmission issues, so you should get that checked out. You may also have a triggered a lockout mechanism to prevent reversing, so check your owners manual to see how to put it back to normal.

Answer by  zx3frenzy (59)

this could be multiple problems. but the main culprits are a broken syncro in the transmission or a broken shift fork. if it has problems with other gears could also be a dieing clutch.a way of testing the clutch is to put into 2nd gear apply parking brake and slowly release clutch if clutch is good car will stall.

Answer by  Kevinnnnn (26)

When your reverse goes out that usually means that you might want to go get your transmission looked at even though it shifts fine. the first sign of a bad transmission is the reverse going out. i had a car that did that and a month later had to get a new tranny.

Answer by  Wrenchman (638)

Many manuals have a lockout mechanism to prevent accidentally shifting into reverse. Some have a ring around the handle which must be pulled up toward the grip to allow it to shift, some require the knob to be pushed down. Read your owner's manual, it'll describe the required operation. If that doesn't help, have a shop look at it.