It was on for about 2 weeks, and today I was going to get it looked at but for some reason it's not on. Should I be worried? The check engine light still works cause its on before I start my car, so I know its not because the bulb blew out.
2006-09-19 13:37:03 · 14 answers · asked by james w 3 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Maintenance & Repairs
a 94 toyota camry
2006-09-19 14:19:56 · update #1
The check engine light is mainly tied into your emissions system (Oxygen sensor) When it comes on, it may mean that your sensor is not working just right. Sometimes they get dirty. I would not worry about it until it comes on again. At that point, you will want to get a code check to see if you have a problem.
2006-09-19 14:56:05 · answer #1 · answered by united9198 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
You don't say what kind of car you have so it's hard to say. Most likely it's an Evaporative system sensor. Back in the 90's they did away with the breather type fuel caps. Those caps would allow gas fumes to escape into the atmosphere and the tree huggers got bent about that. Well, the fumes need a place to go. What the automakers did was design a system that burns the fumes instead of putting them into the air.
On top of the fuel tank there is a hose that runs to the front of the car and into a canister. The canister contains charcoal filters that clean the hydrocarbons from the fumes. Those fumes then exit via another hose that's attached to the intake manifold on the engine. The fumes enter the cylinders and are burned with the rest of the gas. So, not only are we saving the ozone, whales, baby seals, and the spotted owls, but were saving alittle bit of gas too.
Now, these fumes inside the gas tank expand and contract with the weather. When this happens it can cause the sensor to throw a code - usually a P4xxx where xxx is a number. If this is the code it's not really a big deal. This is also why they tell you to check the gas cap. A loose gas cap causes the fumes to leak out and the sensors go whacko because they're not picking up a reading on the pressure. You can live with this and it won't hurt the car, but you should have it checked just to be sure. A shop will charge about $80 for this. Autozone will do it for free.
2006-09-19 13:57:36 · answer #2 · answered by Jim C 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Check engine lights come on for a variety of different reasons. They can even come on when your gas cap isn't tight enough. Your best bet is to get your car checked out for free at AutoZone or Advance Auto Parts. They can check if there are any pending error codes on your car's computer that hasn't showed up yet. I used to have the same problem with my Toyota Corolla, and when it would go away on the dash, the code would show up as pending on my OBDII Scanner. If there are no codes showing up when they check it, I would say you're scott free. Like I said earlier, it could have just been the gas cap or something simple like that that corrected itself.
2006-09-19 13:44:54 · answer #3 · answered by Vicky 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
as all said above you didn't say what kind of car it is. and as all said above the gas cap may be the culprit. My car is only 2 yrs old and I had this problem. I finally got a new cap and it did fix the problem. If your car is a chrysley product ...if you want to find the code...just cycle the ignition switch off and on 3 times...on the last cycle leave the switch on and it will give you the code..either by flashing the check engine light or on the odometer.
Hope this helps
2006-09-19 14:05:37 · answer #4 · answered by Kenneth S 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
do no longer sweat it, that's why mechanic shops earnings on folk like those men in right here, heavily. ok the eng easy. i want greater information. visit autozone and function it checked, its unfastened. i could desire to understand what code is giving. The knocking, confident, oil grew to become into thank you to low so the lifters is what you're listening to. with the aid of including new oil to the old would not do something different than convey it to point, in spite of if it does shrink to rubble the viscosity consequently reducing the compression. exchange the oil as quickly as you are able to, purchase your self a bottle of lucas and tell whoever is changing the oil so you might function it in. Run it, and with a bit of luck the lifters are nevertheless stable. stable luck.
2016-10-15 04:43:06 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Be sure your gas cap is on very tight. That will trip the Check Engine light too.
2006-09-19 13:46:04 · answer #6 · answered by Albannach 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Even if the light goes off, the code that set the light is still set inside the computer. Go read the computer using an engine analyzer. Some parts shops loan you one for free. (BIG deposit required, bring your credit card for that). Autozone, or Murrays has them. They might even do it for ya for free! Beats worrying about it!
2006-09-19 17:14:24 · answer #7 · answered by MrZ 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Possibly. If it doesn't come back on, it may have been a minor nuisance that cleared itself up, or even something trivial like leaving the gas cap on too loose. If it comes back on, though, get it looked at.
2006-09-19 13:42:37 · answer #8 · answered by Mad Scientist Matt 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If it comes back on, definitely get it checked out. It may have been something as simple as your gas cap was not on tight.
2006-09-19 13:45:24 · answer #9 · answered by Stephanie73 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
well it may have been a clog in the exhaust/o2 sensor and it fixed itself, could have been dirt in the fuel system or something.
if it is a newer car it wouldnt hurt to have it plugged into a computer to see if theres anything wrong.
i wouldnt worry a whole lot though.
2006-09-19 13:42:13 · answer #10 · answered by JustinFordJones 3 · 2⤊ 0⤋