Check transmission, check engine

Bought a used 99 Trooper last year and noticed that the automatic shifter stops in 2nd gear instead of drive when moving the selector out of park. Am wondering if it is contributing to the check trans, check engine lites? Second time they have come on. The last code said internal slippage, but everything worked fine (no erratic shifting) and the dealer did a trans service. Is it possible that the electronic trans position sensor is bad or confused?

This is the classic symptoms of a bad range / mode switch. It's a small black box bolted to the shift arm sticking out the left side (driver side) of the tranny. It's got a fairly large wiring connector plugged into it. Search the rodeo & trooper forums for a bunch of info on this.
G/luck
Joel

Small oops, going from park to drive, the shifter goes past drive and into 3rd gear where it hits a stop. Is this normal for a Trooper???