1995 850 Shiftlock & blinkers

[jfk2670]

Hi there. I'm having some issues with my 1995 850 Sedan. I'm a 20 year old college student who knows a little about cars, and I couldn't find anything about the specific issue i'm having on the web, so I decided to make an account and post here.

The issue: When I start my car, the shiftlock is engaged and requires the "Shiftlock override" button to be pressed in order to move it out of park. Additionally, the "ABS" dash light will illuminate until the car is put into park. Finally, the speedometer and other dash utilities will not illuminate, and the blinkers will not work. This occurs about 1 in every 5 times I start the car.

Other info:
- I've done some work on the car, but nothing that would cause this issue (CV shaft, spark plugs, tires, etc). I can provide a complete list of work if you think it would help.
- I used to be located in Rochester, and this happened much less (maybe 1 in every 100 starts?). I drove down to Atlanta for work and now it's much more common. Could it be the heat?

Hopefully someone will be able to help me identify the issue. Additionally, If someone could explain to me the purpose of the shiftlock, I'd greatly appreciate that.

Since I'm new here, I just want to state that I'm so happy with this car! I purchased it 2 years ago for 3k and I've put a good amount of work (and love) into it. I'm at 164k and I want to keep it forever. Happy to have found this forum!

[BEJinFbk]

Search "Ignition Switch".
Sounds like the electrical contact block
on the back side of it is going out. It's a
common issue with these cars as they
age and pretty easy to replace.

The shift lock is there to ensure that
your foot is on the brake when you
take it out of Park.

[jfk2670]

It'seems definitely the ignition switch. Moving the key back to position II fixes the issue. I'll be replacing it soon!