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+--- Thread: Need some help with a "check engine" light (/showthread.php?tid=203121)
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - Dennis S - 03-21-2017
Autozone will do it for you.
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - Microman - 03-21-2017
Own one. Harbor Freight, with 20% off coupon. $35.
You can read your code, and search for what is wrong, by using Google. And get an idea if you can fix it, or if it needs some maintenance.
Reset codes, and see if drive cycle is completed for smog check.
Device really helpful.
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - raz - 03-21-2017
thanks all. ordered
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - cbelt3 - 03-21-2017
PeterW wrote:
Just take your car down to Advance Auto or OReillys. They will read the code(s) and reset the computer for free.
Depends on your state. Anywhere you are EPA inspected (like Ohio) will NOT reset the code.
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - davester - 03-21-2017
cbelt3 wrote:
[quote=PeterW]
Just take your car down to Advance Auto or OReillys. They will read the code(s) and reset the computer for free.
Depends on your state. Anywhere you are EPA inspected (like Ohio) will NOT reset the code.
I don't think EPA does inspections. Individual states do though.
Also, this sounds ridiculous so I am skeptical of this claim. Oftentimes codes are spurious and need to be reset to determine whether they are recurring. It's a normal part of diagnosis.
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - mrlynn - 03-21-2017
Thanks, Ombligo, for the link. I just ordered one. Got $5 back for choosing 'No Rush' shipping.
/Mr Lynn
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - Article Accelerator - 03-21-2017
raz wrote:
The light occasionally comes on in my 2003 Matrix. The last N times this has happened, my friendly mechanic plugged in a device, read the code, reset the light, and said to come back if it happens again.
This was about 4-5 months ago, and the previous was 4-5 months before that.
Short answer is that I really don't want to eat into the time and good will of my mechanic. Is this device available to the general public?
Sure, as OBD II readers can be found as low as $30 or so.
But your Matrix is trying to tell you something…
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - D. Lawson - 03-21-2017
cbelt3 wrote:
Depends on your state. Anywhere you are EPA inspected (like Ohio) will NOT reset the code.
The Ohio e-Check inspections (designed to be compliant with the EPA's Clean Air Act) are only required in the Cleveland area now (Cuyahoga, Geauga, Lake, Lorain, Medina, Portage and Summit counties). The Cincinnati inspection stations were shut down over 10 years ago.
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - Speedy - 03-22-2017
raz wrote:
I think Markintosh hit it on the head. The problem does seem to happen about 20 miles after a fill up. So, maybe I'm not tightening the cap enough now and then.
As to the mechanic - he's real good and real honest. If the problem goes away for a few months, it's likely not worth pulling parts.
If it is a gas cap, perhaps you could just disconnect the battery for 15 minutes and the light would reset.
Re: Need some help with a "check engine" light - tenders - 03-22-2017
I get a code on one of my two Mazdas about twice a year that I read with a direct-connect scanner, and the code stands for something like "catastrophic fuel leak." Translation: fuel cap, like everybody says. Retighten cap, reset code, move on, no big deal. Not sure anything' actually broken but it isn't worth fixing regardless.
Point is that having a code reader in the garage is very useful. I have a WiFi reader too for iOS but it isn't worth the hassle of configuring it every time compared to just plugging the standalone reader into the car and getting straight to business.