2018 Honda HR-V Stuck in Park: The Unusual Cause Behind Multiple Warning Lights
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An ‘Art Car’ is loosely defined as a drivable vehicle that has been altered, adorned, and customized into a mobile work of art. This artistic work is typically done by the vehicle’s owner, giving each art car its own unique and personal flair. I have had the pleasure, or perhaps distinction, of working on two art cars in my many years as a mechanic.
Both cars were owned and created by the same person: an eccentric older gentleman who would show them at various art festivals. This particular art car started its life as a 2018 Honda HR-V, though you would never know from outward appearances. An authentic whale bone, antique hub caps, reflectors, antlers, cattle guard grille, and corrugated sheet metal obscured this HR-V’s true identity.
The vehicle was driven very infrequently, with hardly 9,000 miles on the odometer. The symptoms that this Honda was showing should not have been a major issue at this stage of the car’s life.
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According to the customer, the car was stuck in park, and the shifter would not engage when he tried to shift out of park. He had to use the shift lock release to get the car going. Multiple warning lights were showing on the dashboard. He tried to check the fuses but was not able to find anything on his own.
Verifying the customer’s concerns was the easy part of this repair; after starting the engine, the dashboard lit up:
- Parking Brake,
- Traction Control,
- Brake System, and
- PARK
were illuminated in bright yellows and reds, signaling that something was wrong.
Just as the customer described, the shifter would not move out of Park, even with the brake pedal pressed. This issue seemed rather unusual for a car with such low mileage, but this was a very unusual vehicle.
To get this compact SUV into the service bay, I needed to press the shift interlock override using a pocket screwdriver to shift the car into drive. Once inside the shop, I grabbed a test light to check all the fuses in the under-hood fuse block, and found the 10-amp STOP fuse was blown. That seemed like an easy enough place to start. I installed a new fuse and started the vehicle.
With the warning lights off, I thought I had made some progress, but quickly found that I had gotten my hopes up too soon. When I pressed the brake pedal, I heard the distinct sound of a fuse popping.
Now, the problem was clear: the stop lamp fuse would blow whenever the brake pedal was pressed. This meant there was a short in the brake lamp circuit downstream from the brake lamp switch. A brief consultation of the wiring diagram for this Honda showed the wiring went directly from the brake switch to the rear tail lamp assemblies and the third brake lamp in the spoiler.
At this point, this diagnosis became a matter of trial and error. After disconnecting the tail lamp assemblies, I put in a new fuse, which popped as soon as I stepped on the brake pedal.
Next, I unplugged the third brake light harness in the lift gate, and this time, the fuse didn’t blow. I plugged the right and left tail lamp assemblies back in, and was relieved when I didn’t hear the pop of a blown fuse. I was getting close to finding the solution.
The issue was related to the third brake lamp.
On most modern vehicles, the brake-shift interlock system prevents the shifter from moving out of Park unless the brake pedal is pressed and the brake light circuit is live. When the stop lamp fuse blows, the system sees no brake input and keeps the shifter locked, which is exactly what was happening here.
Unfortunately, in order to access the wiring harness, several of the art car’s sheet metal panels needed to be removed. It was a slightly tedious process, but once it was apart, I was able to check the wiring harness. I found a hole in the shielding, and after cutting it open, I found a hole in the power wire to the third brake light from one of the screws holding the sheet metal in place.
With the wiring repaired and the spoiler reinstalled, the brake lights and shifter were back to working properly. What a peculiar problem on an equally peculiar car! The owner was slightly embarrassed to find out he had caused the issue, but given all the sheet-metal screws used to customize this vehicle, it is not surprising that one of them was installed in a bad spot.
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