Help: '02 W220 S500 stuck in park
 

My recently purchased '02 W220 S500 is stuck in park. It occasionally would be difficult to get out of park, but now is stuck and I can't get it out of park. I tried shutting the car off and trying again but without success.

What could be causing this? Does anyone know of a resolution?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Mike

My first suspect would be the brake switch. It determines that you are pressing on the brake before allowing you to shift out of park. Should be under the dash behind the brake pedal. Normally a simple inexpensive DIY repair (20min @ $20) but on a S-Class don't know for sure.

i read something on this forum about a brake switch. Mercedes-Benz Forum

the owners manual has a bypass in case something breaks. good luck, chuck.

Sorry, but I'm not finding this in the owners manual. Any hints?

I believe he is referring to a small hole to the lower left of the shift gate. If your transmission has one, insert something like a ball point pen into the hole and push down to release the gear shift lever.

well, I downloaded the 2002 s owners manual and could not find anything about a bypass. I've had this a couple of times and it was there. but, different and earlier cars. sorry 'bout that, chuck.

ok, try this-

How to repair Mercedes Benz stuck shifter, replace shifter lever instruction. - YouTube

good luck, chuck.

The issue is pretty simple to diagnose. There's a locking/unlocking solenoid in the shifter. It's activated by stepping on the brake pedal. You should be able to feel/hear if it's working or not. If you can feel it clicking the shifter is no good. If you can't feel it working the BLS is probably no good.

The 220 S-Class doesn't have an emergency shift release. This is a necessary anti-theft feature since the 220 doesn't have a steering lock.