Brake Light Dilemma

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jerry525

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Brake Light Dilemma

I have a 2000 Tahoe Z71 (old style from the 2000 yr) 357 L engine.
Brake lights went out. No fuse problems, etc. Replaced brake light switch up under the brake pedal (almost impossible to get to).

Started up and brake lights worked.

Next morning just to be sure my wife watched while I applied the break. They worked. Then I applied the brake a second time and they did not work.
So I started up and attempted to put vehicle in gear. It wouldn’t budge from Park.

I disconnected the battery and waited about a half hour, reconnected it and tried again. Could not get out of Park. (I thought that perhaps disconnecting and reconnected the battery might reset some computer module that affects the brake light switch and the shift lever).

So I bought a new switch but before spending an hour swapping out the existing switch which was replaced a few days ago, I thought that someone might have some ideas on why I can’t get out of Park. And no the brake light do not come on when I depress the brake pedal. I realized I could have had a bad replacement switch which I installed and I now have a new one to try again.

But I can’t understand why the gear shift lever is frozen in park. I know you can drive without brake lights so I can’t see how the brake light switch (which may be burned out) would freeze the gear shift lever.

I thought about the gear shift cable which attaches right behind the dash where the gear shift display is, (it’s pretty close to where I was working to replace the brake light switch) but if I broke or disconnected that, I would think that moving the gear shift lever to Drive, etc. would allow me to move to those positions even though I wouldn’t be transferring any movement to the other end of the cable where it attaches to the transmission.

Can anyone help?

Thanks!

Jerry525
 

CHEVYMANE

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The gear shift lever won't move because it didn't "recognize" you applied the brake. There's another little box under there that you might've unplugged. I unplugged mine during testing something else & found out that's what the box was for. I could shift out of park without applying the brake.
 
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