dont even need that, just pop up the cover and tweak the little white latch underneath

that's how i've been doing it to get lever out of the way when working on the stereo.
mainly because I tended to sit in the passenger side for more space, all tools around me, get comfy then look at the gear selector and go 'god dammit' so I found a way that wasnt getting out of the car and walking around to the other side lol

admittedly that involves popping off the pen holder thing first but that only takes a quick flick of a screwdriver or a plastic spatula thing depending how precious you are about your trim

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retuning to topic... it was an eyebrow raising time for me as well when it first happened. that brief oh my god how do i stop it! panic. before you calm down and check online