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Column gear shifter/stuck in PARK


R***A**N**G**E***R

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I have a 1996 ford ranger 4x4 and for the last month my column shifter has felt a bit sloppy and also when I put it in park and then get back in my truck to go some place else it won't shift out of park BUT after a couple tries of turning the key and removing my foot from brake and back again it always would shift out of parking gear and off I would go but today was a different story,as I was getting back in my truck after going to the store I could NOT get it out of park for like 5 minutes FINALLY it shifted out of park and I put it in drive and went home.

I have decided from now on to put it in neutral,turn it off and put on my emergency brake and lock it up when I am not in it, so the obvious question is what in the hell is going on???

update/ALSO the last few days I have noticed that when I have cruise control on and when I go to TAP the brake to disengage the cruise NOTHING happens, truck still goes until I tap the brake 5 or 6 times frantically then the cruise will shut off.

Are there any write up's about this exact issue with other people experiencing this problem and what was the fix? I am ASSuming this is most likely the ( BRAKE SWITCH ) kinda makes sense, please tell me it;s the brake switch,lol
 
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James86

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It sounds like two different issues here.

First off, it sounds like you may have the same issue my friend just had in his 2000 Explorer. The connecter at the end of the shifter loosened and it got really sloppy, and he would struggle to get it out of park. Finally one day, he was fighting with it and it broke partially, so there was so much slop he had "N" and "D". I ended up loaning him my wheelblocks for a week and we managed to tighten it back up, but one side was broke so we got him reverse until he got it into a shop. I'd look underneath to see if anything is loose. Itll look like this:



Its apparently a common enough issue on RBVs, and this thread goes through it pretty well:

http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/821496-stering-column-shifter.html


As for the cruise issue, it may be something else, such as a relay in the brake circuit not working. That could explain your issues getting out of park as well. My dad keeps having an issue in his Mazda MX6 where applying the brake to shift form "P" doesnt alway disengage the park safety interlock.

Just throwing out ideas...:dunno: Good Luck
 

R***A**N**G**E***R

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I had a good look at the brake switch today and one of the two wires was almost broken in half so I just spliced it and now my cruise works when taping the brake and I don't get stuck in parking gear anymore.
 
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James86

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Glad it was something simple.
 

ozziemo27

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I had a good look at the brake switch today and one of the two wires was almost broken in half so I just spliced it and now my cruise works when taping the brake and I don't get stuck in parking gear anymore.
that makes sense on both issues. glad to hear you figured it out!
 

vamoosevarmint

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Thanks for the post I have been looking for this fix for a couple of years now. I will check it out and see if it fixes mine. I thought it would be more complicated
 

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