I am in northern Manitoba and it got to -40 the night before last with a -49 windchill. My gear shift froze. I let it warm up for 2 hours and was just able to shift. Got my erands done, came home and am staying put till it warms up to -20 on Friday (hopes).
5 years with this car, this has never happened. And that is with winter gas, synthetic oil and plugged in block heater and battery charger.
Hope you figure something out.