I had the same problem last summer. It took about 3 attempts but my local dealer figured it was the Brake Pressure Relief Valve. They fixed it and did not charge me anything. They said this has been a problem with 2007 Outlanders.

 

What housing do I need to remove? What **** is there a contactor on the right side of? What is a bladge? Are you talking at the gear selector or at the brake light actuator?
I'm having this problem and getting nowhere with my local dealership's service department, and Mitsubishi is saying there is no recall on this problem.

 

I got my brake pedal switch replaced under warranty, I think they said that in snowy/salty climates it can get corroded easily, causing the problem

Also the manual release is a small tab in a circular indent just above the shifter in the plain black plastic console, pop that out and insert a small screwdriver then the shift lock is manually released, (as if the car battery is dead it's a fail safe for towing), it will not affect anything when you release it this way, all gears and lights will function as normal (assuming you have a good battery)