strider784
New Member
Occasionally, when I try to shift out of park, the release button doesn't work. This is on a '93 ATX 3.2 L SHO. Anyone have a similar problem and can someone help.
ATX - Can't shift out of park
- Thread starter strider784
- Start date
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SHO Continental
Moderator
Check the brake interlock switch.
mattsho1993
SHO owner
You know the white plastic stick inside the tube for the shifter? maybe its broke or the plastic button itself is broke inside where when you push it in it pushes the stick down which releases it from park...
you can always take the console apart and pull off the interlocks from the shifter. I did that on my red 94 because I didn't want to screw w/ fixing it. now it works like every car prior to 1980 did.....
SuperHO
Mental Patient
first, confirm your brake lights aren't working. once you've done that, open your hood, find the long skinny connector that's pretty much straight down from your master cylinder and unplug it. then locate the blown fuse, either underhood or in the cabin and replace it. now rejoice in your working shifter and thank me later.
hawkeye18
Sorta cares
Or, it's the Brake On/Off (BOO) switch. If the tail lights don't come on when you hit the brakes and the fuse is good, then that's your culprit. It's located on the brake pedal arm.
green95
green95
I had this problem the day after I bought my sho. Turned out to be the wires going into the brake switch had broken. Fixed the wires and haven't had a problem since. I hope its this simple for you.
strider784
New Member
Yep. it was the brake interlock switch. Thanks for the tip
hawkeye18
Sorta cares
No, you take that problem to your dealer to have the recall performed before your SHO catches fire.
You don't want that switch disconnected, I can tell you that. When my switch was bad, my brakes would not operate.
hawkeye18
Sorta cares
No, you take that problem to your dealer to have the recall performed before your SHO catches fire.
You don't want that switch disconnected, I can tell you that. When my switch was bad, my brakes would not operate.
If you electrically disconnect the cruise control deactivation switch, all that will happen is your cruise control will stop working.
If you physically pull the switch out of the master cylinder, then yes, your brakes are going to stop working.
http://www.shoforum.com/showthread.php?t=76641
That's a thread I posted way back when that explains the switch (and connector) in greater detail.
Let's start back to the basics.
If the switch starts leaking, which causes the burned fuse, lines, fire, or ******* in a bunch, it has failed. When this switch fails, it would take a ***** to remove the switch and not replace it because even captain obvious would know your brakes would fail after that.
That said, failure of this switch can cause your brakes to fail, also. I experienced the failure, which resulted in a brake pedal to the floor without activating the brake calipers. Disconnecting the switch didn't change the results because the fault is in the switch. A failed switch has the potential at any given time, even when you think the brakes are working, to cause your brakes to not function. Been there, done that, had 3 ATX SHO's that had the recall performed before it even became a recall. Your thread was just relaying information already known years before that by other SHO members...
The moral of my original post is, don't ignore the problem by just disconnecting the switch, but replace the switch or you might end up killing yourself. The fluid will gush out of the connector. Understand now?
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hawkeye18
Sorta cares
Man, you really don't like me, do you?
The point of the thread was so that those not part of the elite-awesome-SHO-gods club might learn about the problems with the switch, and learn that they should replace it ASAP - as my thread told them to do.
The moral of my post here is, the cruise control deactivation switch had nothing to do with the original problem, and while yes - replacement is always a good idea, it wouldn't have solved OP's original issue.
Now please, lay off the veiled personal attacks, they're getting old.
Man, you really don't like me, do you?
Now please, lay off the veiled personal attacks, they're getting old.
No one is personally attacking you, maybe it's the parania you are suffering from being stationed in Iraq.
hawkeye18 said:
Yes, just like my last post was to inform you of the other problem, which causes the brakes to fail. Your post and SuperHO's can mislead others into thinking that disconnecting the switch will solve the problem, which it can but still presents a more serious problem. I explained that problem, and now I'm accused of personally attacking you.
hawkeye18 said:
Yes, but it contributes to the post made in this thread about the possibilities of why an ATX will not shift out of park. If someone comes reading this thread with the same problem and the brake pedal switch is not their problem, they will read SuperHo's post, then your post backing up that disconnecting the switch will not cause brake failure, which I pointed out it would. I'm sorry you felt insulted and took this as a personal attack after the fact that I was just trying to help inform other members when I countered your post.
I am finished with this and hope that someone can benefit by my post, realizing the potential hazardous situation that can be brought about by ignoring a failed master cylinder switch.
hawkeye18
Sorta cares
No one is personally attacking you, maybe it's the parania you are suffering from being stationed in Iraq.
There is precedent here. My location has nothing to do with it; you're coyly trying to say I don't know what I'm talking about, and I do.
Yes, just like my last post was to inform you of the other problem, which causes the brakes to fail. Your post and SuperHO's can mislead others into thinking that disconnecting the switch will solve the problem, which it can but still presents a more serious problem. I explained that problem, and now I'm accused of personally attacking you.
Look, the problem is that you're bringing up a separate subject. The reason the switches were recalled is that the brake fluid makes it past the barrier, corrodes the connector, and causes higher resistance, which can cause a fire, destroying the vehicle and whatever it's in. My post that I linked to showcases that problem by showing you how f'ed up my connector to that switch was. And failure of that switch, in any way, will not cause you to be unable to shift out of park, which is what this thread is about. I should also point out that disconnecting the cruise control deactivation switch removes the possibility of fire, as there is no electricity going to a switch that isn't plugged in.
If somebody cannot shift out of park, and their brake lights do not come on when the brake pedal is pressed, then the problem is either in the BOO switch, the wiring to/from the BOO switch, or the fuse supplying the BOO switch. It cannot possibly be caused by anything forward of the firewall. It is purely an electrical malfunction.
Therefore, disconnecting the cruise control deactivation switch (which is, as the name implies, part of the cruise control circuit) will have no effect on your ability or inability to shift out of park. Furthermore, electrically disconnecting the cruise control deactivation switch will have no effect on your braking ability. The mechanical failure - or removal - of the switch itself is what causes brake fluid to gush out of the MC and your brakes to stop working. It has nothing to do with the electrical circuit. Saying that unplugging the switch will make your brakes stop working is like saying that disconnecting the A/C Clutch cycling switch will cause all your refrigerant to shoot out. Removing the switch will cause that. Disconnecting it just makes your A/C compressor clutch not turn on.
I am finished with this and hope that someone can benefit by my post, realizing the potential hazardous situation that can be brought about by ignoring a failed master cylinder switch.
On this we can agree. A failed switch is bad, bad juju and will wreck your day (and your car) real quick. It would've been better if this analysis were germane to the topic at hand, but it's still a valid point.
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