Why won't car won't stay in drive if head lights are on

Asked by eagle_92207 Mar 16, 2017 at 02:52 AM about the 2006 Kia Spectra SX

Question type: Maintenance & Repair

I have a 2006 Kia Spectra. i thought the transmission went out. but the car
works fine. until i turn the headlights on. if i put my car in drive and turn my
headlights on it will knock the car out of gear like its not even registering a
gear. the only gear that will work is reverse with the headlights on. i can drive
during the day perfectly. so what could possibly be wrong?

12 Answers

224,145

There may be a problem with the shift interlock system. I have never heard of a problem like this, so I would suggest getting the vehicle into a shop to be looked at before you get totally stuck somewhere.

4 people found this helpful.
70

Did you ever find an answer???? Mine is doing the exact same thing!!!!

7 people found this helpful.
20

I would like to have an answer to because mines doing the same thing is anybody out there to answer me or to give me an idea what that problem is

2 people found this helpful.
10

Check the multifunction switch. Could be shorting out and causing that problem.

1 people found this helpful.
10

Same here. Will post solution if I can figure this out :/

1 people found this helpful.
10

You might do well to replace the transmission module.

1 people found this helpful.
10

We have a 2011 Kia Soul left it in nc for the summer got back here and door wouldn’t unlock got a locksmith to come then won’t come out of park after a week of turning it on got it in reverse and neutral but won’t go into drive? How to fix can’t back up on a mountain

1 people found this helpful.
50

DRL RELAY IN THE UNDER HOOD FUSE PANEL... REMOVE IT AND THE CAR WILL STAY IN DRIVE WITH THE LIGHTS ON! HOPE THIS HELPS SOME1..

5 people found this helpful.
10

Hey Josh I pulled the Relay and did nothing but I noticed when I turn my DRL lights on it will only shift into Park and Reverse but if I turn it off it will go into Park-Reverse-Drive-3 Ect. Do I need to replace the Relay or the DRL Switch or what?

1 people found this helpful.

I took my DRL relay out and it DID fix the problem with shifting, however, now my entire dash has no lighting, which is kind of a problem at night. Any ideas, like AE7600, should I replace the DRL relay or what?

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