(Safety! Make sure you block/chock all wheels before you do any of this guys.)
Once I had removed, taken apart, cleaned and re-assembled the PNP switch, I put it back onto the rod/shaft. I then put in the 17mm bolt that goes on the right side of the PNP switch, but not even hand tight, just enough for it to be 'in' the threaded hole and allow me to rotate/turn the switch to the left and right. The rod/shaft acting as the "axis".
With the rod/shaft turned (with channel lock pliars) to the Reverse position, and the gear shift selector knob (in the car
) in the Reverse position, I had a friend stand behind the car - ready to call out "off" or "on".Then I used a jumper cables to connect my battery cables to my battery, the battery was sitting on the ground in front of the front bumper.
(Note: I'm sure I remember other posters and people who did write-ups say that "the reverse lights will turn on and off as you rotate it in BOTH directions. Mine did not. Mine only came on after turning 'x' amount to the left (counter-clockwise). At least one other poster shared this weirdness with me.)
So, with the battery hooked up to the car by jumper cables, the selector knob in Reverse, the rod/shaft in Reverse, and the ignition in position...I or II, (I honestly can't remember this, which ever allows the reverse lights to be on - sorry) I rotated the PNP clockwise as far as it could turn. My reverse lights went off before it reached the 'end' of its clockwise turn (signaled by my friend saying "off", hah). Then I very slowly rotated it back counterclockwise and waited for the reverse lights to turn on (signaled by my friend saying "on", he was given some beer - don't worry). Now, mark the point where the lights turn on as best as you can - against something that isn't rotating with the PNP, you know?
From that marked point, as I continued to slowly rotate the PNP counterclockwise (left) all the way, my reverse lights stayed on the whole range.
So I just chose a spot between where they turned on and the rest of the 'range' of movement left (counterclockwise) using the clean area/bolt marks - where there was no rust/dirt as a marker. Then tighten down the 17mm bolt, and the rest, shift arm etc...
Oh one huge point I should mention:
I think the moment I knew It was in the right place was when I had sat in the car to move the shift knob into 'R' or something, I noticed that the Mode Selector lights (economy and winter) and the Orange Up Arrow had stopped flashing. That had not happened the other 2 or three times I put everything back together only to still see them flashing. The key to this is that you HAVE to have the battery hooked up to see if these are flashing or not. When I notice they weren't I said "hey..." then asked my friend "are the reverse lights on?" He said "yup", and I thought - It must be in the right place then. . . And it was.
More beer...
If this is a lil convoluted, my apologies.
And in reference to my Note above; if your reverse lights turn both on AND of as you rotate the PNP clockwise and counterclockwise on the rod/shaft, then it should be 'easier' to align it. You can kinda just "pick the middle" of your two inside marks you make.
But I really do think hooking up the battery is a huge help.
