Shifter Locked In Park. Again!

[a2jack]

This time 120 miles from dealer. More after car comes out of shop.

A2Jack.

[Dave777]

Time for them to put a brand new one in. And some sort of rental car compensation. And a free lunch.

[a2jack]

Originally Posted by Dave777

Time for them to put a brand new one in. And some sort of rental car compensation. And a free lunch.

Well, no lunch but but a nice reception, and most of all a whole new shifter unit,
! hour 45 mins and back on the road, Dealer has 6 of these shifter assys in stock.

Heres the get home free fix on the locked shifter. A2Jack.

Gear Knob Button STUCK!!

[Dave777]

Thanks for posting the emergency fix. I'll print it out and put it in my owner's manual.

[KeithAlanYerian]

See also... DIY gear shift removal and lube (short video)

A little oil will solve the problem.

[Old SGM]

Your process works great, I had a little trouble getting the left side cove to unlatch, I used a small screwdriver on both sides. The right side unlatched easy, but when fiddling with the left the right relatched, so I left the screwdrive under the edge of the shift cover edge to prevent relatching. I also use a small flat tip screwdriver to life the yellow lever.

After 800 trouble free miles, I noticed the brake lights did not work. I checked the owner's manual, there are 35 fuses, but the owner's manual only lists 20. I called the 1-800 number, the guys was very helpful, but he also did not have a complte list of fuses. He called back about 15 minutes later and told be the brake lights were on Fuse 34. That fuse is on the back side of the panel. It looks like the panel would swing down, but it won't. Any way I got the panel down and fuse 34 was OK. I then decided to move the car so the tow truck could get to it easy, then I found it was stuck in Park and the ABS light was on. So I called the 1-800 number again. This was Saturday monrning, Smart scheduled a rollback to pick up the car first thing Monday and take it to the Dealer, which in 102 miles away one way. According to Smart, they will repair and bring the car back to my driveway. That saves me at a lease 200 mile trip.

A2Jack Thanks again for the process, the car is now not blocking my garage door and the tow truck will have an easy pick-up.

When I get the repair slip I will let you all know what they said was wrong or what parts had to be replace.

At least it got stuck in my own driveway and not along I-95 in the middle of no place Virginia.

[a2jack]

Originally Posted by Old SGM

Your process works great, I had a little trouble getting the left side cove to unlatch, I used a small screwdriver on both sides. The right side unlatched easy, but when fiddling with the left the right relatched, so I left the screwdrive under the edge of the shift cover edge to prevent relatching. I also use a small flat tip screwdriver to life the yellow lever.

After 800 trouble free miles, I noticed the brake lights did not work. I checked the owner's manual, there are 35 fuses, but the owner's manual only lists 20. I called the 1-800 number, the guys was very helpful, but he also did not have a complte list of fuses. He called back about 15 minutes later and told be the brake lights were on Fuse 34. That fuse is on the back side of the panel. It looks like the panel would swing down, but it won't. Any way I got the panel down and fuse 34 was OK. I then decided to move the car so the tow truck could get to it easy, then I found it was stuck in Park and the ABS light was on. So I called the 1-800 number again. This was Saturday monrning, Smart scheduled a rollback to pick up the car first thing Monday and take it to the Dealer, which in 102 miles away one way. According to Smart, they will repair and bring the car back to my driveway. That saves me at a lease 200 mile trip.

A2Jack Thanks again for the process, the car is now not blocking my garage door and the tow truck will have an easy pick-up.

When I get the repair slip I will let you all know what they said was wrong or what parts had to be replace.

At least it got stuck in my own driveway and not along I-95 in the middle of no place Virginia.

Glad this is of help. We had a tech session at Bloomfield, yesterday, put on by the service dept for their customers. Here's a shot of the shifter box with an arrow to the yellow button. That's the fuel pump in back.

My photo edit program ran out ,but I have lots more pix and will get them up this week. A2Jack.

[Old SGM]

I just got the car back for the dealer. Initial diagnosis was bad brake light switch, took a day to get a new one, then found out that was not the problem.
Here is what the repair ticket said:
"Tech line advised checking fuse 18. Fuse 18 is good. Reviewed wiring diagram with tech line. Found fuse 38 (that controls the brake lamp switch) to be blown and that a 7.5 amp fuse was installed from the factory where a 15 amp fuse should have been present. Installed fuse. Cleared faults and test drove vehicle. Everything OK at this time. Case #DTAC1128."

Smart Car Center of Virginia Beach Service Dept and the Roadside service folks did a great job. Picked up the car at my house and after the repair returned it to my driveway. This was a new type of problem that apparently had not been encounter before. Electrical problems are hard to find, especially when no one has any experience with a new car. They kept me abreast of what was happening. I am totally satisfied with the quality of the service.