I have a 99 suburban that at times won't shift out of park I have to depress brake pedal over and over till im able to shift out of park into gear I don't know what it could be as switch in pedal seems to be working since lights work fine I would told a solenoid in steering column but don't know which one any help is greatly appreciated thanks
CK5
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1999 4x4 suburban shifter gets stuck in park
- Thread starter JUNIOR-K5
- Start date
I assume that your vehicle normally will not let you shift out of park without pressing the brake pedal.
If so, then there are about 3 possibilities.
First, the brake switch may be a two part switch. One for the lights and one for the lockout. If so, then the lockout side may be going bad.
Second, the linkage may be out of adjustment. The solenoid that locks the lever is not all that strong. In most cars, if you try to pull the lever out of park while stepping on the brake, it will bind the little locking pin and the solenoid cannot pull it out.
Try pushing the lever a little farther towards park while pushing on the brake.
Or holding the brake down and moving it back and forth gently to see if it releases.
Third, the solenoid might be releasing just fine, but the transmission park pawl is binding.
You usually find this if you are parked on a hill with a load on the drivetrain.
Also, the linkage between the lever and the transmission might be binding.
That solenoid is not all that big or loud, but if you turn on the key, and turn off all the noise makers you can, fan, radio, etc.
You might be able to hear it if you get down and put your ear next to the column while pressing and releasing the brake pedal with your hand.
If it is intermittent, then suspect the brake switch.
If so, then there are about 3 possibilities.
First, the brake switch may be a two part switch. One for the lights and one for the lockout. If so, then the lockout side may be going bad.
Second, the linkage may be out of adjustment. The solenoid that locks the lever is not all that strong. In most cars, if you try to pull the lever out of park while stepping on the brake, it will bind the little locking pin and the solenoid cannot pull it out.
Try pushing the lever a little farther towards park while pushing on the brake.
Or holding the brake down and moving it back and forth gently to see if it releases.
Third, the solenoid might be releasing just fine, but the transmission park pawl is binding.
You usually find this if you are parked on a hill with a load on the drivetrain.
Also, the linkage between the lever and the transmission might be binding.
That solenoid is not all that big or loud, but if you turn on the key, and turn off all the noise makers you can, fan, radio, etc.
You might be able to hear it if you get down and put your ear next to the column while pressing and releasing the brake pedal with your hand.
If it is intermittent, then suspect the brake switch.
The solenoid is not releasing the shifter like it should and J's advice is sound for your issue.
In the meantime, before you get it fixed, the way to bypass the inter-lock is to turn the key to the first position (releases the steering wheel but not turn on the radio) then you can pull the lever from park with out the brake, then start the truck normally.
Brake/park interlock switch.
