Gearshift sticks in Park

Having gone through this for a couple of months with my F-150, I have
corrected the problem by replacing the brake switch itself.  I did this even
though the brake lights always were always on when I pressed the brake but
could not get out of park.  It did correct the problem immediately.
Meanwhile, I had My F-150 in under warranty twice but they could not fix the
problem.  I made the repair myself after it was out of warranty.

On Thu, 1 Oct 2009 04:48:40 -0700 (PDT), Gerri


The most common problem is a bad brake light switch.  Less
than $30US aftermarket.  About 15 minutes to change with
ordinary tools.  It is attached to the brake pedal under the
dash.  Your cruise control may also be a bit flaky about
disengageing.  You mignt also be sure the brake lamp bulbs
are good.  System is sometimes flaky with burned out lamps.

When it does this you should be able to place the ignition
in the "OFF" position - not locked - and place the trans
selector in nuetral where you can start the engine with the
brakes applied of course.  The interlock should only work
with the ignition in the run or start switch position.

Lugnut

wrote:


 I checked/replaced the brake switch and all the wiring - the solenoid
was intermittent - I could never prove it with an ohm-meter or
anything but it would not release when cold, and occaisionally when
warm. I decided not to spend the money to replace the part and just
snapped off the linkage.

Why do stuff right when you can be a fuck up....

If I did that to your car and you had an 'incident'... you would sue my ass
off.... no matter how much money I saved you at the start...

On Sun, 04 Oct 2009 17:43:47 GMT, "Jim Warman"


I'd never "Sell" it it on a customer's car as a "repair" - but I'd
have a hard time explaining to the customer why after spending a few
hundred dollars to replace everything that could not be proven
defective it still jammed.. With my experience with the Mystique
electrical system I cannot be sure there was not an intermittent
connection in the harness somewhere either. The connections on that
car have been better than 90% of problems I've had with it.
Being my own car, and being in the winter, and being busy, I didn't
have the time to chase down the intermittent - so I  reached in with
my "special service tool" and dissabled the linkage with extreme
prejudice.

For a customer I'd tell him up front it is "time and material" to find
and repair the intermittent - and there is no refund on any parts
replaced, whether they solve the problem or not.
Sometimes replacing a part to eliminate IT as the cause is cheaper
than stripping out a harness to verify IT is not the problem.

I've done automotive electrical troubleshooting for many years - and
am known to be pretty darn good at it. Non automotive electronics too.
 I'd give him 2 other options.
He can dissable the interlock or (as many have done around here when
possible repair costs get close to a thousand dollars) put another
Contour/Mystique/Probe/Villager in the scrap yard.

In the local yard, of the last 15 or so Contour/Mystiques that have
gone through, only ONE had any body damage, there has been virtually
NO severe body rust, and most have driven in under their own power.
They either needed work to pass the safety, didn't pass the E-Test, or
were nickle and diming the owner to death with little things.
Electrical parts get stripped out of them pretty quickly at the yard -
if I want something I better be there in the first couple of days.
Many of the electrical components/connectors I've needed have been bad
on the cars in the yard too --- so going to the work of replacing the
shift interlock with a used part was NOT going to happen.

So I drive vehicles that a customer could not afford to keep on the
road. And what kind of "incident" is it going to cause? Cars do not go
into gear and accellerate by themselves. The interlock prevents the
DRIVER accidentally putting it in gear and accellerating. ANd in
Canada we don't sue neerly as quickly as in the good ol' U.S. of A.

Hey Lugnut!

Tried your idea...Works like a charm!

A few times since, I forgot to do this, and two or three times, the
gear shift came out of PARK like it's supposed to.

But, when I turn the ignition to OFF, step on the brake, it comes out
of PARK nice and easy, and starts in the neutral position.

Will check on the price of a new brake switch soon and see about
installing it or having it installed.

THANKS!!

Gerri

On Thu, 8 Oct 2009 06:39:11 -0700 (PDT), Nicole


Ur  Welcome.  Glad it works to get you out of a bind.  The
correct switch should be available at almost any decent
dealer or parts outlet.  It is hel in place by a hairpin
sort of clip that is sort of twisted to unlock and remove.
Once the under dash cover is removed, it can easily be seen
how it comes out. with a good light.  It took me a little
time the first time with the bifocals with which I'm stuck.

Lugnut

Gerri wrote:

My 08 F150 did this, and i recalled back to my days of my 95, when a
brake bulb was burned out... changed the bulb, no problem...
on my 08, it only did it once, for about 2 minutes, i had to turn the
key ahead, put it in neutral and start the truck..

let me know your fix... my 08 was NOT the brake bulb

Finally got my 97 Tbird into the shop.  We checked and found out I did
not have any brake lights!!!!  Oh no!!  My mechanic looked under the
dash and found the connector to the stoplight switch was melted.  He
replaced both, and now I have:
   1.  Brake lights
   2.  Can start car in Park and then shift
   3.  My cruise control works again
Fixed three things for only $60!

Now, if we could get rid of the cold weather here...

Gerri  :-))