Check Engine Light

[ozyman]

The check engine light on my car just came on as I was driving home. I am going to call the shop tommorow morning to find out when I should drop it off. I know nothing about cars so there is a high probablity I could get hosed. Anyone with any car knowledge feel like sharing what I should be on the lookout for.

[jason_t]

[ QUOTE ]
The check engine light on my car just came on as I was driving home. I am going to call the shop tommorow morning to find out when I should drop it off. I know nothing about cars so there is a high probablity I could get hosed. Anyone with any car knowledge feel like sharing what I should be on the lookout for.

[/ QUOTE ]

The first thing to check is that your gas cap is on tightly. If that doesn't fix the problem, read your owner's manual. If nothing in there helps, post in the "Dear bison" thread. Other than that, it's too hard to diagnose the problem over the Internet. Good luck.

[slickpoppa]

the check engine light could mean any number of things, some of which have almost nothing to do with the engine. unless there are any other symptoms, there's not much i can say

[fluxrad]

I agree with the other posters. Half the time it could mean some random sensor went out (hehehe..."random").

Other times it could mean that your engine is on the verge of exploding and killing a bus full of school children you're passing but leaving you with nothing but a half-burned face and a broken heart. Now you'll have to live with the memory of the fact that you drove the car too far. How does your selfishness make you feel? Do you love yourself now knowing what you did? From this point forth you'll always wake up sweating, remembering the look on that kitten's face as that single, dislodged school bus tire rolled towards it with the fury of a God that had forsaken all love for it.

You are a son of a bitch and I hope I never meet you in person, sir!

[The Goober]

Most modern cars have some sort of self-diagnosis system that will attempt to tell you whats wrong - when the check engine light comes on, you plug a little computer thingy into some socket somewhere (probably under your dash) and it will tell you the error code. These diagnostic comptures can be pricey, but I remember seeing a sign outside of an autozone saying that you can borrow one and use it for free. Try asking some local auto-parts stores about this. If you can lucky it'll be something simple you can fix yourself (like replacing a gas cap or a spark plus) - but at the least you should have some idea of whats going wrong and have a better shot at not getting ripped off.

[Corey]

Many older cars have systems to check the engine fault code without diagnostic tools. For example, most Chryslers pre-98 (I believe) have a simple key trick that will read out the code in flashes of the check engine light.

[Daliman]

There are many auto parts stores, such as Autozone in the midwest, that will check the code for you for free. Sometimes it ends up being a very simple-to-replace part, sometimes replacing that part just leads to another code popping up beicause the part replaced was only one of a few problems. Either way, I recommend doing that first, then if it doesn;t fix the problem, take it to a reputable repair shop, NOT the dealer(unless it is still under warranty). The dealer charges 30%+ more than most sops, and will also make it sound like alot a routine maintenance also HAS to be done to fix the problem. Expect to spend about 1 hour of labor for a code check through whatever shop you take it to, usually anywhere from $50 to $95, depending on where you live and what kinf of car you have, plus any further diagnostics, parts, and labor.

[InchoateHand]

I just keep driving and it goes away.

[Leo99]

How many miles were on the car when the light lit? Some cars light up around 85000 to tell you to check/change the O2 sensor. You can also disconnect the battery to reset things. If it pops on again, you need to check it. You can go to AutoZone but you need to find someone there that knows what they're doing. Some older cars have an LED code under the seat you can decode on your own.

[DBowling]

my check engine light comes on every 9k miles or so. its to remind me to change my oil. If youve got a newer honda, maybe thats it.

[mostsmooth]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
The check engine light on my car just came on as I was driving home. I am going to call the shop tommorow morning to find out when I should drop it off. I know nothing about cars so there is a high probablity I could get hosed. Anyone with any car knowledge feel like sharing what I should be on the lookout for.

[/ QUOTE ]

The first thing to check is that your gas cap is on tightly. If that doesn't fix the problem, read your owner's manual. If nothing in there helps, post in the "Dear bison" thread. Other than that, it's too hard to diagnose the problem over the Internet. Good luck.

[/ QUOTE ]
tightening the cap won tmake it go away immediately, at leasy not on my car anyway. it took like 4 days /images/graemlins/cool.gif

[bholdr]

i'm suprised no one else mentioned this:

what does your odometer say? often, esp in later models, the "check engine" light is a way for the manufacturers to remind you that it's time for your 30k, 60k 100k 150k miles checkup, etc. the light can't be switched off (without disconnecting something) except by the dealership.

Unless you've noticed other signs that your car is not running properly, i would ignore it. the symptoms that would worry me would be the normal "uh-oh..."s: noises, smoke, rumbling, loss of power (this one esp), etc.

one thing you could do (and should be doing every 10k miles or so) is check your compression. if all the cylinders are running at the same rate, your timing is good, your valves are set, then i wouldn't worry about servicing it.

my grandfather's solution? a little peice of electrical tape over the light. problem solved. what is the make/model/mileage, BTW?

[Porcupine]

Depending on the car, you should be able to find out how to find the check engine light (CEL) code, what it means, and how to reset the CEL online (I was able to for my Maxima). My car will flash the CEL to tell what code it is then I can look that up online to see what the problem is.

Like someone said, the CEL won't usually go off right away even if you fix the problem. If you fix the problem and reset the CEL it should stay off.

[PassiveCaller]

Some newer cars... if you leave the gas cap open That'll do it!

[Leo99]

Check your compression every 10K? Why on earth would you do such a thing? It's easier to check the computer for error codes. Cars are all electronic now. You need to worry about sensors and the computer chips failing.

[NoTalent]

[ QUOTE ]
I just keep driving and it goes away.

[/ QUOTE ]

I cut the wire to my check engine light and I don't have this problem anymore

[TStoneMBD]

go to autozone. they will check what the engine light is about for FREE. then you can decide if you want to take it to a shop or not.

[bholdr]

just do it when changing spark plugs. takes like ten minutes... very accurate gauge of overall motor health.

[bholdr]

though it's a bit of a waste of your car has less than 150k on it or so.

mine has 218- so it's definitly +EV.

[Patrick del Poker Grande]

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
The check engine light on my car just came on as I was driving home. I am going to call the shop tommorow morning to find out when I should drop it off. I know nothing about cars so there is a high probablity I could get hosed. Anyone with any car knowledge feel like sharing what I should be on the lookout for.

[/ QUOTE ]

The first thing to check is that your gas cap is on tightly. If that doesn't fix the problem, read your owner's manual. If nothing in there helps, post in the "Dear bison" thread. Other than that, it's too hard to diagnose the problem over the Internet. Good luck.

[/ QUOTE ]
tightening the cap won tmake it go away immediately, at leasy not on my car anyway. it took like 4 days /images/graemlins/cool.gif

[/ QUOTE ]
It could be a bad tank of gas too. You'll have to run through the whole tank and get into a new tank of good gas before the light'll go off if this is the case. Where did you buy your last tank of gas from? Was it some podunk POS gas station in the middle of BFE? Was it at a grocery store?