It's rare that a repair for a check engine light can be fixed simply by resetting it or disconnecting the battery. The dreaded light will return! Don’t be mad however, the light is only the messenger. It is simply doing it’s very important job letting you know that your vehicle isn’t operating at top efficiency....and this is a good thing! But keep in mind like I said in my earlier post, Your car’s computer can still receive a false reading and turn on your “Service Engine Soon” light. But after resetting it with your Amazon Code Reader, if it returns, then you should have your car diagnosed at a repair shop.
The Malfunction Indicator Lamp (MIL), is not only for the vehicles emission system as some techs would have you believe. This light informs the operator when there is a problem anywhere in the vehicles Electronic Engine Control System. This system basically includes all sensors, solenoids, valves, actuators etc. that your vehicle needs to operate correctly. As I'm sure you’ve concluded, this system is huge, and can include both engine and transmission concerns.
This is where you come in! With only a few basic tools, a little patience and some mechanical aptitude you can pinpoint and repair most of these concerns yourself.
The next few Posts will include a quick review of how the most common Sensors can be reviewed, identified and possibly fixed!
I want to start of with the Oxygen Sensor. This Sensor reads the amount of unburned oxygen coming out of your exhaust pipe. The computer then uses this reading to balance the fuel mixture. As oxygen content in the exhaust increases (known as a lean condition) the sensors voltage reading decreases. This signals the computer to increase the amount of fuel the injectors are delivering. In turn the oxygen content in the exhaust decreases (known as a rich condition). The oxygen sensor voltage increases as a result of this richening, and the computer reacts by reducing fuel flow. As fuel quantity decreases we return to a lean mixture, and sensor voltage drops. This process repeats for as long as the engine is running. This continuous feedback loop is the heart of the fuel control system. If your car is running real bad such as a bad spark plug wire, this can affect the oxygen sensor reading going into a lean condition causing your light to come on! In this case, take your car to a mechanic. But if your car seems to be running smooth and your light comes on Then I would suggest using your Amazon Code Reader to clear the code and see if it comes on at a later date.
Now some people will retrieve an oxygen sensor code from their code readers and replace the one which showed up bad. Now 50% of the time this procedure will work and all you have to do is replace the sensor then turn off the light with your code reader and your car is fixed! But as I stated before, if the darn light comes back then go to your mechanic with your retrieved code and inform him you already replaced the oxygen sensor. That will save you money from being ripped off and your letting the mechanic know you have some knowledge of the problem at hand. He will then think twice about scamming you! It will also save you a couple hours worth of labor diagnostic time he will charge you. Oxygen Sensors should be changed out every 60 to 100,000 for better performance and increased gas mileage. After that amount of mileage your Oxygen sensors get slow and sluggish reporting inaccurate readings to your onboard computer.
