ESP and ABS lights are on, shifter is locked in park and cannot be moved. Car cannot be started. Battery is fully charged. My mechanic looked at it and felt it is an electronic problem and that it was beyond his expertise to fix it. Currently, the car is at a Mercedes dealer. Any thoughts on what the problem might be?
I know nothing of Mercedes, but that car should have an anti-theft immobilizer that kills the ignition if someone tries to start it without the properly coded key, right? I imagine that that system could easily lock the shifter because the shifter is electronically locked until you step on the brake. I would first try resetting the immobilizer function. I don’t know how to do that on your car, but if one of your keys is the designated ‘master’ key, the mechanic is going to need that key to reset the immobilizer.
If it turns out that the immobilizer did trigger improperly, check your battery and alternator and clean your battery clamps and grounds. Weird voltage dips and surges do strange things on modern luxury cars. A dirty ground cable or worn out alternator brushes can drive you crazy before completely failing.