Ford Repair: Gear shift Selector shows incorrect, ford taurus, luck chris

Question
QUESTION: 1998 ford taurus - gear shift shows incorrect gear:  shows as park but actually in reverse - shows as neutral, but actually in drive (essentially 1 off) - I can sometime correct this by moving the gear shift all the way "down" to "1" - what is the most likely culprit?

ANSWER: hey there, this is actualy a fairly simple repair. unless there is something else wrong. you will have to remove the cover at the bottom of the steering colum, ( Not on it, underneith it). you may also have to remove both covers on the steering coluum as well, but i can usualy do this with out removing those covers. now you will have to look up at the steering colum and look for a peice of white plastic that has a thin cable going to it,( this is usualy underneith the part where the key goes in but a few inches farther to the rear) on this white peice there will be a little black adjuster wheel. turn that wheel untill you are dead on park, while in park. Then run it through the gears to make sure everything is lined up properly then reasemble everything and that is it.
good luck
Chris P

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Thanks!  It seems to work properly now.  What could cause this to go out of adjustment, and what is the chance it will happen again?

Answer
Hey again. Some times if there is somekind of work done in the dash area and anything is moved, including the instrument cluster. then there will be a good chance that that indicator gets thrown off. But cable may slip or componants just wear out to the point where it needs adjustment. WE usualy dont see it that often though. good luck
Chris P