My Car would not go into drive.

are you sure you were shifting into drive and not B. Because it can only shift into B from D.
Another possibility is that your foot was on the gas pedal instead of the brake pedal.

I figured it out dashboard brake light stays on until you are in Ready, so you must not have been in Ready.

 

Operator error, misadjusted or faulty brake pedal position sensor, dying 12V battery. See if it happens again.

 

I was shopping the other day when this same thing happened to me.I had to shut the car off then restart to get from park to drive . The parking light was also on but not engaged.Hope someone can shed some light on this weird thing .
my prius is a 2006

 

Janice45, the symptom you describe indicates that you pushed the Start button and immediately shifted before the Ready light came on. There is a slight delay between Start and Ready. I've done the same thing myself on occassion.

 

Thank You

 

My wife is having a simlilar issue with her 2006. She uses reverse to get out of the garage, but when she gets down to the street and goes to put it in drive it won't go into any gear forward or reverse. It's happened a few times now, any suggestions?

 

See the above ideas from Richard.

 

I'm pretty sure it's not operator error, I've witnessed the occurrence.

Of the other two, is that something I can check or is it something I need to take to the dealer?

Thanks!

 

If you have a digital voltmeter, measure the 12V battery voltage after the car has been IG-OFF for an hour or more. If the voltage is much below 12.6V then I suggest you replace the battery (or else try charging it if the car has been lightly driven.) If you charge the battery disconnect the negative cable terminal connector first, and use the low current setting (no more than 4A).

You'll probably need dealer help regarding the brake pedal switch. Or if you want to DIY, find the switch and measure resistance across the contacts when the pedal is very slightly depressed. If the switch doesn't immediately actuate upon a very slight pedal depression then the switch needs to be adjusted or replaced.

The switch has two sets of contacts, one for the cruise control system and the other to operate the brake lights and control when the transaxle can shift into a drive gear.

 

It happened again last night. Going to the dealer tomorrow. $90 just to look at it.

 

This is normal practice, the dealer wants to discourage you from coming up with random complaints. If you are willing to pay $90 then presumably you are serious regarding your issue.

If your problem is covered under warranty (i.e., 3 year/36K mile) then that labor charge should be waived.

 

You can also have the car do a self-test of the 12V battery with no tools needed. See the procedure given in jdedenberg's post in the thread here:
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