lever arm - are you referencing the cable with the coil on it from the hand hvac control?

if so what i did to remove that little bugger (it is a tuff one) was clip and unclip, working with a pair of hemostats to "unwind" the spring end and gently push off the coil...

granted mine was not broke and i was removing it to paint the engine bay so i was standing were the tranny bell housing should be...but thats what i did

Jake