A couple of days ago I left home with my family for a 9-day trip in our
1999 Discovery Series II (68,000 miles). When we stopped for supper the key would not come out of the ignition switch. I tried moving the shifter in and out of PARK but that didn't work.Since then I've traced the problem to the module or switch that indicates to the car the position the shifter is in. When the car is cold the red lights on the shifter bezel light to indicate the shifter position, and the LCD indicator on the dash next to the odometer shows P,R,N,D,3,2,1. In this condition the key can be turned and comes out.
After driving the car and getting it warmed up the red lights and the PRND321 indicators disappear. In that condition the key cannot be turned and removed even though the shifter is in the P position. The other indication that it is all tied together is that the steering wheel lock works fine when the car is cold but doesn't engage when it is hot.
This indicates to me that there is an electrical switch module that is causing the problem. When the car is cool the switch makes contact to indicate the shifter position. When the car is hot the switch components expand and fail to make contact.
Because I will be on the road the next 7 days I can't look up the repair in my shop manual. Can someone please tell me the following?
- Is the diagnosis correct?
- What is the part called that needs to be replaced?
- Can the problem be corrected by cleaning the switch component(s)?
- Is the part replaced from the above or from below the car?
Thanks for your help.
MLN