Hi all,

I have a 1998 automatic civic EX that is currently stuck in park.

This seems to be a popular topic. I have tried to do lots of research. And, I have gone down the checklist that I found in other threads.

#1 - My brake lights do come on when I press the brake pedal. All three - left, right, and center.
#2 - I checked the #7 under-hood fuse (30A) -- it is a larger "square" type fuse that I am not familiar with but it appears good.
#3 - I hear no clicking coming from the center gear shift area when I apply the brakes.
#4 - I can use the shift lock release with my key to get it into neutral - then start the car and then put it into drive.

This is where I am with trouble shooting. And, this is where most of my other research ends as it seems most people have a bad fuse and they are fixed after replacing it.

Can anybody offer me other suggestions to try and trouble shoot or fix?

I looked up on AutoZone's website and a new Duralast Stoplight Switch JA4010 cost about $50. This is a lot more than the $5-10 other people have mentioned, and I am just wondering if I am looking at the right part? Or, if this part is even the culprit since it appears my brake lights are indeed working.

Any advise is greatly appreciated.

Thank you!

 

www.rockauto.com
5.40-> 30 bucks for the same switch various brands.

 

Thanks for the link!

So, do you know if it is possible for the brake pedal switch to be bad even though my brake lights are functioning?

Everybody seems to fix theirs with a new fuse or the thread just dies with no replies. Trying to troubleshoot this more.

Thanks!

 

typically the brake light switch and park release both go through the same switch but different circuits. so yes its highly possible definitely no i dont know for certain. im a bit of a chubby guy so looking under the dash of my 00 coupe isn't happening. if you can find your switch if you have 3 or more wires coming out of the switch its internally separate. brake switches typically handle 3 things. brake lights, a shut off for the cruise (which is also sometimes tied to the park release, or separately the park release. if you replaced the fuse blown or not and its still not releasing the park you might have a bad actuator. the actuator can be unhooked and powered directly as a test. if you have a multimeter you can also just test the plug for the actuator to see if its getting power at all when you press the brakes.

 

Thank you for the more detailed info, I appreciate it.

I am pretty sure I understand what all you are saying and that I am capable of checking/testing those things.

Once I get some free time, I will dive into this.

Thanks again!

 

So, I finally got some time to tear into my Civic...

I undid the brake switch. I am not sure if it is testable with a multi-meter or not, but I tried. I used the completed circuit function.

After I unplugged the brake switch, it has four metal tabs inside of it.

The top two (small tabs) are open (reading of 1) when the brake is pressed. And, completed (reading of ~032) when the brake released.
The bottom two (large tabs) are completed (reading of ~068) when the brake is pressed. And, open (reading of 1) when the brake is released.

I am not sure if that is telling me anything useful or not. Or, if I am measuring the switch correctly. Not sure if the top/bottom tabs are paired or if the left/right tabs are paired. If I measure the left/right pairs of tabs, I get an open reading (reading of 1) no matter if the switch is pressed or not. Again, not sure if I am measuring the switch correctly.

I then took apart the center console and got down to the guts of the shifter. I can see the mechanism that release the shift lock and I can see the actuator. The actuator makes no noise nor does it move when the brake is released or engaged. Car not running.

I unplugged the plug from the actuator. Very tiny. I tried to use the multi-meter on the plug as well. I again used the completed circuit function,

The multi-meter read open (reading of 1) no matter if I pressed the brake or not. Again, I am not sure if I was reading this correctly or not. the car was not running.

I have been trying to research this in other threads as well and I keep getting conflicting fuse numbers. My brake lights and horn work. I originally checked fuse #7 under the hood. Are there other fuses I should check?

You also mentioned the actuator can be removed and powered directly as a test. How do you "power it directly"?

Thanks!

 

if your having electrical trouble in a vehicle you should automatically check all the fuses regardless. anyway the plug going to the actuator should be showing 12v. multimeter set to the v with a _ for dc. one prong on a clean piece of metal and one on a plug prong and press the brakes if you dont see 12v from either prong the actuator isnt being powered. if you see 12v the actuator is probably shot.

 

Thank you for explaining this.

I will test this further as soon as I can.

Thanks!

 

I should have also asked:

Does my diagnostics of the brake switch make it seem as though the brake switch is good? Or, would you recommend replacing it?

Thanks again!

 

not sure on the brake switch measure everything with the ohm/resistance setting or the dc volt setting. not sure what type of meter your using. my meters just display a resistance level or just says open. if it only displays in a numerical value it should show numbers with a k or an m signifying if the resistance is in the thousands or millions. im a maintenance tech so i only use fluke brand meters that generally have a bunch of options and can read measurements well into what is already considered an open circuit.