NSS (neutral safety switch) Experts Inside Please

Anyone know if the arm (with the brass contacts) and with the threaded bolt that takes the lock washer and nut is a servicable item? Meaning, can you just get this replacement part at a dealer?

It is the very top piece in the picture at the link below.

http://www.jeepin.com/features/nss/nss7.jpg

I took my NSS apart and cleaned it all up and it has fixed a no-start problem, but two of the four threaded "posts" are broke off and I can't get the lock washer/nut to stay tight.

Don't really wanna fork out $199-$399 for it at one of the autoparts stores or the dealer.

Thanks.

R_Willis said:

Anyone know if the arm (with the brass contacts) and with the threaded bolt that takes the lock washer and nut is a servicable item? Meaning, can you just get this replacement part at a dealer?

It is the very top piece in the picture at the link below.

http://www.jeepin.com/features/nss/nss7.jpg

I took my NSS apart and cleaned it all up and it has fixed a no-start problem, but two of the four threaded "posts" are broke off and I can't get the lock washer/nut to stay tight.

Don't really wanna fork out $199-$399 for it at one of the autoparts stores or the dealer.

Thanks.

Click to expand...

Bummer but you can only buy the switch.

go to the junkyard and get the small stuff you need. most they'd charge is a couple of bucks.

I'm with Xgeek.
Your cheapest route is the boneyard.
As far as I know, the stealership only sells the NSS as a whole.

The arm itself broke inside mine -- how a cast aluminum paddle inside a switch breaks is beyond me... but hey, it's a Jeep, right?

Like others have said, you can pick up another switch from the junkyard. I got mine for $10; however, it was for an older XJ ('87, I believe) and there was one less pin inside the housing. The connector was different, too. I can confirm that the arm IS swappable between switch designs if you happen upon the old one.

If I remember right, all the four threaded quadrants do is to secure the wiper arm to the flat output shaft that comes out of the transmission by creating a friction fit(...someone correct me if I'm wrong.)

You may still be able to use the switch (at least until you can get another one) if, after you install it, the arm follows the shaft when you put the gear selector through its range. The part that holds the NSS to the tranny is the single bolt that you loosen to adjust the "clocking" of the switch. You might just get lucky enough to be able to use it as is until a junkyard donor is available.

n5xl said:

If I remember right, all the four threaded quadrants do is to secure the wiper arm to the flat output shaft that comes out of the transmission by creating a friction fit(...someone correct me if I'm wrong.)

You may still be able to use the switch (at least until you can get another one) if, after you install it, the arm follows the shaft when you put the gear selector through its range. The part that holds the NSS to the tranny is the single bolt that you loosen to adjust the "clocking" of the switch. You might just get lucky enough to be able to use it as is until a junkyard donor is available.

Click to expand...

can you go into more detail about the "clocking part" . i just finished cleaning my nss, and now i dont have 4th gear sometimes. does the big nut on the wiper need to be a little loose? i think i tightned the crap out of it!

"Clocking" the NSS is an adjustment that is done on installation, to make sure that the wiper arm links up to the right contacts. It's fairly simple, and something I'll have to look up to describe in detail, but it essentially involves making sure the vehicle will start in both Park and Neutral, and "turning" the NSS (within a fairly small sector) until it does.

The shaft that goes thru is the "wiper arm" mover - it's the other end of the manual shift shaft. That nut really only needs to be tight enough to make sure that the shaft turns the wiper arm - overtightening can cause you trouble later.

The bolt that's up near 12:00 on the NSS is the "adjuster" - you loosen that one, and then you can move the case relative to the wiper arm for, say, 10-15 degrees of rotation. That's the one you loosen to adjust, and that one should be fairly tight to prevent the NSS from moving (but not too tight - that one threads into aluminum!)

Make sense?

5-90

thanks 5-90 for the details... gonna re - mess with it soon!

You can find a new NSS on Ebay for under $100, type out "Neutral Saftey Switch" in your search. I had cleaned my old one, but the fix only lasted about 6 months. I didn't want to go through that cleaning repair again with another old switch from the boneyard.

For some reason, the new switch that that I found on Ebay was difficult to install over the gear indicator stud (?) - sorry, not an expert. It was a very tight fit over that stud. If you run into this, try "pressing" it on with the aid of a spark plug sprocket to fit over the stud (as you make progress), along with the handle of a crescent wrench for leverage off the unibody frame.

It's tempting to just tap it in place if it doesn't slip back on easily. My frustration turned to banging. It was lucky that the switch, or the stud didn't break before I saw the light.

I think I used 3/8" pipe to drive my NSS units back onto the shift shaft - but I can't swear to it. As I recall, I used a 6" nipple, put the nut on the collet until it was flush, and used the pipe as a "sliding hammer" to settle the thing onto the transmission case. I think I also has a bit of foam or neoprene (about 1/4" thick) to pad the thing before it hit the transmission case, which I then removed and TAPPED the rest of the way down...

Oh - if anyone had broken NSS's that can be donated, I'd like them. PM me for details - I'd like to get at least the model year, engine, and trim level (not that the latter should matter at all,) with each switch.

Why? Comparing switches, and maybe making service parts for them. I've got drawings of the contacts around somewhere for a 1987, and maybe I can come up with a wiper arm and such... Just another projects for Works in Progress...

5-90