Car stalls when shifting into park or reverse too quickly

Well issue started about a week ago. Started off went to shift it into park and the car stalled. This is an automatic by the way. Issue started happening off and on for the past week then came to notice if you didn't shift too fast and did it slowly wouldn't stall at all.

This leads me to this new problem that came up today. Went out to start it was a little chilly about 55 or so. Car wouldn't start wouldn't click just turned the key and nothing happened. Tried that two or three times before I came back inside. Went back down about 5 mins later tried again and it started right up. Turned it off and back on started fine. It didn't start again after it sitting there for a few mins then next turn it started back up. The other thing that happened is the one time I started it sat there in idle for about a min or 2 mins then stalled. Now that hasn't happened since have started it and left it running and drove it around to see if the problem would happen again and it hasn't.

Not sure whats causing this so any advice would be appreciated.

This is a 2002 Focus ZX3.

Thanks.

sound like the transmission might have sensor problems

You're describing 2 seperate issues here. One is a no start condition, the other a stall when placing into gear. Your latest no start condition sounds like a little corrosion between the battery cable mating surfaces and the battery terminals. Clean them up real good and if you can, slather some dielectric silicone grease on the surfaces to virtually bulletproof the connection for a long time. I also use dielectric silcone grease on all of the electrical connectors to bulletproof them as well. Be advised that dielectric silicone grease is a textbook derigueur on ignition wires at their connection points for all HEI systems such as ours. Or it could be your ignition switch is going bad like what happened to dazada in the post, one below yours. As for the stalling check out the discussion 3 threads below this one and see if anything might be of help to you. Could also be a bad solenoid. As for conspiracies by the auto manufacturers who cannot repair their own vehicles, I have to agree as it could be a sales technique between the sales and service departments so that we just buy another car from them. Anyway, do keep us all informed as to the outcome of this and all problems, concluding the thread with what the solution was to the problem. :smile: