Engine Malfunction light on my Ford KA?

Question

The engine malfunction light has come on my Ford KA (year 2000). Does anyone know what this will mean? the car was sluggish and didn't pick up speed just before the light came on but prior to that, we drove around 80 miles in it and it was absolutely fine. I will be taking it to the garage but wondered if anyone on here has any idea what's wrong with it and how much it will cost to fix?

Thanks!

Answer 1

Unfortunatly the illumination of an engine management light can be the result of many problems on a vehicle, The best thing you can do is to get a reputable garage to look at it and more importantly read the ecus DTC fault codes.

The fault codes will give the mechanic/technician a general idea of what the fault is (depending on his skill and the difficulty of the fault) and direct them to fix the vehicles problem.

I strongly suggest that you dont try DIY work if you dont have at the minimum a general knowledge of vehicles and i defnitly would reccomend against discconecting things as a process of elimination unless you have a good knowledge of motors and the engine managemnt system.

If you disconnect for example the MAF sensor (mass air flow) it willl create a new Fault code on the ecu, (or multiple fault codes) this can mislead a mechanic/technician into diagnosing the wrong fault and could ultimately lead to more expense than neccesary.

If you have disconnected anything make sure you show the garage what you did when you take the vehicle in.

to answer your question on cost...........

Unfortunately it could cost anything from a hook up fee and small repair (£30-£70) to the unimaginable worse case scenario of a faulty ecu (£500-£1200)

The good news is, Ford Ka's are a seriosuly straightforward car to work on, they have a number of easy to solve common faults that most mechanics will be aware of, and very few major problems. heck i would not be surprised if your Ka just needed a good service and the Engine management light has flagged due to rough running.

other poss problems are MAF (previously mentioned by another person)
Lambda sensor, fairly common
ECT sensor... extremely common on most Fords and cheap to fix :D

Good luck and i hope its an easy fix for you.

and sorry that you cant possibbly get a good reply to your question.

Answer 2

Ford Ka Engine Management Light

Answer 3

Hi

This sounds very much like a faulty MAF (Mass Air Flow) sensor, and you can check this by disconnecting the wiring plug from the sensor. It is located right next to the air filter housing and is fitted to the intake trunking which comes out of the filter housing.

If your car runs any better with the sensor unplugged then you need to renew it, which is a very easy DIY project and will save you a wee bit of cash.

It could be something else but I would be checking this first as it is perfectly typical of a failed MAF.

Cheers

Geordie

Answer 4

firs take it to AUTOZONE and tell them that your engine light is on and they will come out and hook it up to their computer and they can find out exactly what is wrong with it. AUTOZONE charges you nothing to hook it up to their computer but if you were to take it to a garage then they will charge you $70.00 to have them hook it up.