Oldsmobile/Buick Repair: Key stuck, gear shift linkage, buick regal

Question
I have a 2002 Buick Regal LS. The shifter sometimes gets hard to shift in and out of gears.It seems that when this happens the key gets stuck in the ignition you have to wait for a clicking noise for the key to release. Sometimes taking up to 10 minutes or so, its become very annoying and alot more frequent.It started this a while back and then stopped and started working fine again but this time has been much more consistent with acting up.Any suggestions as to what my problem may be?

Answer
What mechanical work or ANY kind of work has been performed on the vehicle recently ?. As most problems that occur after a recent repair was made can be traced back to the area of where the repair was made.  Look around in the area where work was performed.

the ONLY other possibility is a fault in the gear shift linkage under the dash on the steering column or at the transmission shift linkage.


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