Gear shift locked up

Well, Joe, get a fresh cup of coffee because this is a story. This car is my granddaughter's. First, she discovered through a cop-stop that her right taillight was out. She opened the trunk and found mouse droppings. We live in the country and have mice and squirrels, but we have never had a problem with cars before. I told her then it could be related. But she went first and got a new taillight. She used her phone camera and checked all the lights. The left side all works. On the right side, only the backup light works. Replacing the bulb did not fix the problem, so she checked all the wires as well as she could and did not find any sign of fraying. She checked every fuse she could find, in the trunk and under the hood. She did not really know what she was doing, and I was not there when she did, so I can just assume they were all put back properly. I am not sure from your reply if you meant if both brake lights were out, and if that problem could be only the one. While I am asking: This is the third car in our yard to have the gear shift locked up in less than 2 years. I am guessing what you called the shift lock module, because both other repairs, the mechanic went into the console and fixed it, so obviously not transmission related. I cannot tell you how many cars I have owned and driven over the years, and I have never had or heard of this problem before. What causes this? She is familiar with the unlock button (something else I never knew existed) but was afraid to drive it to the mechanic (about twenty miles) in case it caused more problems. Thus, my attempt to find out what was wrong first. Thank you so much for your prompt reply, and your patience.

Thank you so much. Provided it is not raining again tomorrow, we will see if we can follow those directions. It sounds like that might be the problem. I will let you know when I know. Thanks again.

Thank you, Joe! I live in Central Alabama and the Easter Bunny decided to bring us a big rainstorm, so we won't be able to look at it today. I am going to have to go up to AutoZone and get a circuit tester anyway, but that is way cheaper than a mechanic if we can fix it. Not bashing your profession, just making the choice to eat next week or take it to the shop! :)

Oh, Joe, Joe, Joe. I am afraid I gave up. We pulled out the trunk wiring and found right away where the mouse had gnawed through the entire thing, casing and all. I twisted the ends of each of the four wires together, taped each one, managed to pop them back into the casing, and taped that on for good measure. All the lights work now except for the brake lights on both sides. Come to find out, when my granddaughter checked the fuses, she could not get to the ones under the hood for the ABS stuff. All the fuses are accessible but those, and they are under some kind of shield. We tried and tried and could not figure out how to get into it. I watched a YouTube video, and the guy definitely got into it, but did not show that part. Just said "after you release the clips, pop it off" and went on from there. We could not determine the clips he meant, and I was afraid I would break something. Did not bother trying to trace the brake light wire further back, since it could have been a simple fuse (I guess) and don't know why both brake lights would now be inoperable except another chewed up wire somewhere before they split left and right, since the left brake worked originally as well as all the right except for the tail/brake light My guess is the mouse was busy all this time. Decided to bite the bullet and go to the mechanic, although I am a little concerned since he did not know how to get into the fuse box either. Said you might have to go from underneath, except it is right over the wheel-well and I don't see how that would be possible. He also said you might not be supposed to get to those particular fuses (two) and that also did not make sense. Anyway. It is now in the shop, and I just pray I can pay the ransom when it is fixed. Thank you so much for all your help, you actually did teach me two or three things I never knew so please don't feel bad that I could not fix it after you told me how. That is on me.

Thank you. Sorry I took so long seeing this and getting back. We picked up the car Friday afternoon. It was a blown fuse, just not the one we thought. It was one under the dash. Had I thought about it at all, I would have figured that out. The one under the hood is for the anti-lock brake system. We had gotten it to the point where everything worked except the brake lights. Ergo, the fuse that operates the brake lights. Duh. So, I had essentially fixed it. The way the problem progressed from just one taillight out to the whole deal, the mouse was still working on the wires when we first started. By the time I got into it and found the wire, he had gone all the way through the whole cluster that went from the left to right side. When he did that is probably when the fuse blew. So, it was fine when we initially checked the fuses. We spent the weekend cleaning out the inside of the car and the trunk and putting out little nibbles for him that hopefully will fix his little butt. He has already been inside the front cup holder since we cleaned it out thoroughly. You may very well hear from me again. Thank you for all your time and help. I love the idea that I have a lifeline. :)