I am getting ready to order parts and do some work on my tranny. I have a hard shift problem as well as a leaky selector shaft seal. I was going to buy a solenoid kit and replace them, but after reading some threads, it may just be my selector switch acting up, so I figure I'll take it out and clean it first before I spend money on the solenoids, pan gaskets, filter, fluid.. And since I have a small leak at the selector shaft seal, I have to take it off anyway. Here are my questions/concerns:

1. In this thread there is talk of needing a special tool to replace the selector shaft seal. Is this tool absolutely necessary? Or can the job be done without it? http://www.vehicross.info/forums/sho...elector&page=4

2. When I open up the selector switch, I know it needs to be cleaned out and greased with di-electric grease. Can anyone tell me exactly which part to greasr? Does the grease actually go on the contacts? (sorry, might be a noob question).

3. When others have described the selector switch acting up, they spoke of the gear position lights on the dash acting up. Mine work perfectly fine and don't jump around. Does this mean the switch is fine? I'm going to clean it either way, just curious.

Thanks ahead of time as always!