Control lever assembly

A control lever assembly for a vehicle transmission includes a housing which supports a guide plate having a slot and a recess formed in a central portion of the slot. A carrier member is pivotally coupled to the housing about a pivot pin. A lever has a shaft which is supported by the carrier and which is rotatable and axially movable relative to the carrier. The lever has a knob which is mounted on an end of the shaft and which is received by the slot. A spring is coupled between the shaft and the carrier and is biased to rotate the knob and to urge the lever towards the pivot pin. When the knob is in the slot and outside of the recess, the slot walls prevent rotation of the knob and maintain the lever in a first rotary orientation. When the knob is moved into the recess, the spring is automatically able to rotate the knob and lever into a second rotary orientation. When the knob is in the second orientation, the recess walls are engagable with the knob to prevent the lever from being pivoted about the pivot pin. The housing includes a detent member which engages detent rollers mounted on the carrier to releasably hold the lever in selected positions in the slot. The knob may be manually moved axially over an abutment formed by a wall of the recess and rotated into a third rotary orientation.