Gear box problem car want start unless wiggle gear stick i fink sensor whats the problem

magnum? a RAM 1500 pickup, i guess magnum is engine jargon?
well it is not really stuck in reverse (well unless is. blush)
but 99%^ of the time that means the clutch is 100% dead.
learn this trick
have a buddy wiggle the truck on say flat garage floor, (no brakes set)
jug it forward and reverse the whole car and you wiggle the shift lever to N
see it does N.
the box has hard cut gears and synchro dogs. and if under pressure huge
the shifter level sticks. all manuals do that, with a dead clutch.
can do it.
do not gorrilla the shift lever or wreck the gear dog forks inside. box.
fix the clutch.

the clutch actuator is dead,. never replace any clutch first
gee my 4wd is 15 hard hours labor to that and I never do , unless MUST/
the best plan on any 22 year old car/clutch is a
new master cylinder and slave kit. first
and learn now to bleed, clutch lines, that are a horror to do .
ok? the fluid in the lines run up/down verically
and the air bubble float up,. making bleeding super hard and confusing to many
. there are tools that make this easy , Pressure bleeding kits.

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/dodge,2001,ram+1500+pickup,3.9l+v6,1366578,transmission-manual,clutch+master+&+slave+cylinder+assembly,10290


we make sure this is working first. 100% full stroke or the clutch is useless.
and locked up fully engaged.
at the least it must be bled fully. off all air.

obviously your neutral safety start switch is broken or dislodged and must be checked/ replaced/adjusted

never buy a car that has no support !
buy a car that has a dealer in town! (so there are parts)
all cars break, so expect that.
and the tranny is overheating.
or buy car that is more simple. or has stick shift with non of this BS.
buy car that local mechs can fix,("ask them first") then buy.

my answer is for far afield car owners. not big city.

is there a DIY
well all cars have FSM book , ALL.
and that begs the question, can lay people understand a book written
for trained technicican.
no body can answer that.

option 2, join a real opel forum
google, "Opel Forum" ?

Check the gear linkage cable (very common problem) look down inside engine bay towards top of bell case (thats where the linkage meets with selector arm. Get someone to wiggle the gear stick while you observe selector arm. (if you move the air box out of the way you can reach down and de-select the gear with your hand- should get you neutral at least)... I'll keep an eye out for any reply...

no crank. no year is this a 1973?
are you asking for wild guessing?
or tests?
have tools> or just eye balls and hands....???

1: check all fuses.
key on, is the CEL , and all idiot lamps glowing?>?>>>>>???
2: jumper cable start car, that works?
3: wiggle gear shifter cranking (A/T)
4: wiggle clutch cranking (M/T)

thats about it , unless you what to hot wire the starts.
or by $29 DMM meter.

hi check and clean the MS air flow sensor, also the gear box needs a service every 2 years. now the service technician will tell you major gear box problems but it happened to me aswell and it turns out the valves inside the gear box was sticking to the valve body and causing the gears to stay in a specific gear till it reaches the rev limiter and would change. so after i got the oil and filter changed on my box, it still got stuck but dont worry as thats a common problem with a very easy solution, take the car on a long road and really put your foot down, let the engine and gear box temperature rise from hard driving and the valves should release itself from the body of the box and re-lubricate itself not to get stuck again

Cars today are designed to not start unless in park or neutral. Given that there is a sensor that indicates the car is in neutral or park and the sensor is likely mechanical in nature. For example when you open your washing machine top during the spin cycle the drum stops however if you use a screwdrive and push the sensor latch down you can watch the machine spin with the lid open. Based upon the age of the vehicle it's likely the gear shifter has loosened up and does not always seat itself while in park hence the need to jiggle in order to get the sensor to tell the car is in park. Good luck, hope this helps!

hi this sounds like the switch is u/s worn, there are two types of switch, in two different locations, there is a plunger type switch, it has a sprung loaded plunger into a small switch box, or the contact type switch, which as you move the stick it makes contact inside the switch, one is located under the vehicle on the transmission the other is connected to the gear leaver under the centre console, you will have to locate and replace, as by what you say it just has warn out and needs a new one, hope this helps

it sounds like it could be a governor problem the tailshaft housing will have to be removed to access it. the trans does not have to removed for this. there is a snap ring that holds the governor on the shaft check to see if the valve in the governor is sticking