+/- Manual Mode Shift Buttons Not Working: How to FIX

[VdellaV]

I experienced problems with the Shift Buttons for the Manual mode on my Silverado: It behaved like there was a false contact or even an electrical short on the inside of the shift lever

 

The transmission worked fine in Drive, and even in Manual Mode, but the truck would shift down when i pushed the button to shift up and viceversa or not register the shift at all.

 

This was specially problematic when trying to engine brake while towing loaded on a hill or so, you get the idea.

 

After disassembling the Column covers and shifter boot i discovered orange rust coming out of the lever where the cable for the buttons exits, so i concluded it was most likely a false contact or short on the internal electrical parts of the shifter itself, caused by rust and corrosion inside of the shifter.

 

Since i caught the problem relatively quickly i managed to fix it by pouring a lot of AutoZone Rust Eater penetrating oil a few times in a couple of days

 

It worked! now the shifter buttons work like new. Im pretty sure that if the rust had corroded the electronics too much, I may have needed to replace the shift lever entirely, since there is no practical way of disassembling it.

 

WD40 could have worked too, but AutoZone´s "Rust Eater" sounded better and is just what i had in hand and worked. There are many brands of Rust Removing Penetrating Oils, most of them should do the same, but i dont know of all of them are Dielectric and safe to use on electronics. MAF sensor cleaner or Electronic parts cleaner could also work as well.

 

TL;DR i made a video about it, hopefully this will help someone not spend money on a new shift lever:

 

 

Edited March 9, 2021 by VdellaV
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