LS430FL

Was running errands yesterday and put the car in park and sat in the car wile it was running for a few minutes waiting for someone who ran into a store.I then wanted to shift the car in reverse and back out of the spot but the shifter would not budge. I tried shutting the car off and restarting but it was still not moving out of park. Finally after pressing and releasing the brake pedal several times while simultaneously trying to shift out of park, I finally got it unstuck and into reverse and then drive. I have since started and tried to drive the car and it continues to get stuck and I have to do the same thing with the brake before it releases. Has this happened to anyone before? Any Ideas? It is a 2001 UL with 170,000 miles. Thanks in advance.

lnguyenh

There is a safety lever that only allows you to shift (out of park) if the brake is depressed. It sounds like the lever is broken. I am not 100% sure but if it is what I think it is, you should not drive your car because you might get stuck on some parking lots. The part is only few bucks but labor is very high unless you DYI ..

Bon

It sounds like a brake switch malfunction. Are your brake lights working? A second possibility is the solenoid that is activated by the brake switch activation. It could be dead. There is a small cover next to the shift lever that can be removed with the screwdriver from your Lexus toolbox then the same screwdriver is used to manually move the solenoid to get the car out of park. Your owners manual will show you where and how.

Lynzoid

Bon +1 dude

LS430FL

Thanks for the replies...the weird thing is, when you for lack of terms"pump the brake" press and release while shifting it will eventually move out of park after a few times

Kansas

That is a further confirmation that the brake light switch at the top of the pedal lever is failing.

Lynzoid

Or shift lock solenoid...

LS430FL

Felt like it wasnt safe to drive so took it to the dealer an hour or so ago..i'll let you know what they say soon...

bnorman

I am having the same promlem with my 2001 LS 430. What was your ultimate solution?

Thanks,

Bruce

LS430FL

I apologize for not updating. Took car to local lexus dealer. They replaced the brake switch and the shifter pad. $575.00 later the car shifts normally again.

HiloDB1

iTrader: (3)

I had this happen to me once. After messing with it I finally forced it out of park. Have not had any issue since and everything has been working normally. So I dont know what might have happened.