bdm408

my 1998 automatic chevy silverado's gear shift gets stuck in park quite often. I notice the problem to occur more often when the weather is hot. At times the gear shift can get stuck for 10 mins until I get off and push the truck back and forth and for some rare reason itbecomes unstuck. Not sure what the problem is, please help, thanx.

cams 98 silverado

alrighty. i got the same exact problem well i had it. first off. when this issue happens again. see if your brake lights are working. when the vehicle is started, and you slowly depress the brake pedel do you hear a click of a relay firing? the relay will be toward the steering column when your seated. if you dont hear the relay click and your brake lights are not working. its your brake light switch.

what you do is crawl under the dash on drivers side. look at the brake pedal and linkage. past the steering shaft facing upward put your hand up and feel the linkage. there you will find a white or possibly black brake light switch. its sort of rectangular in shape. get a pair of needle nose pliars and feel for the little clip holding the switch in place. it will be on the brake linkage. pull the clip off and do not lose it like i did. mine fell under the carpet and have yet to find it. there will also be a plastic washer so be careful. now that thats off push the switch up then pull off the linkage. then carefully take the electrical connection off. pay attention if any wires are loose or anything. then go to a dealership and get a new brake light switch. its going to be like 19 dollars. believe me i tried gettin a switch from advance and auto zone. i went though 6 of them. the dealership one is by far better. the other brands are just crappy plastic. then re-assemble everything and it should work.

another good way to see if it really is your brake light switch. when you get in the truck while running. go under the dash and with the switch in before replacing find the wire connection on the top of the switch and kind of wiggle it and make sure the switch is snug on the linkage. push the electrical connection into the switch making absolute sure its in. and then try shifting it.