Imagine you’re driving down the road when suddenly, your car’s “check engine” light suddenly comes on. Normally, the appearance of a check engine light indicates a problem somewhere in your vehicle, but nothing seems amiss. Your car is still running at its best and there seems to be absolutely nothing wrong. So what’s happening?
The whole purpose of the check engine light is to illuminate whenever there is a problem. These problems can range from faults within the electrical system, the engine, fluid levels or to problems within the car’s emissions system. The problem can even be as simple as forgetting to tighten your gas cap – in fact, this is the most common reason why check engine lights appear in the first place. If you think this is the cause of your check engine light, simply twist the gas cap until you hear a clicking sound.
It doesn’t have to take a mechanical issue in order for this light to appear. Unfortunately, many people assume that the appearance of a check engine light when everything seems fine with their vehicle is just a glitch that can be ignored. Many think ignoring a check engine light will make one go away – instead, it’ll only make the underlying problem grow worse over time, that could eventually result in a major breakdown that requires significant time, money and effort to fix.
Just to be safe, you should have a technician perform a diagnostic scan on your vehicle to pinpoint the exact issue that’s triggering your car’s check engine light, especially if you’ve already checked the simple solutions like a lose gas cap. Today’s on-board diagnostic (OBD-II) systems make it easier for both technicians and vehicle owners to correctly identify problems that trigger check engine lights and take care of those problems sooner. These diagnostic scans are not just relatively quick, but they’re also inexpensive to have done.
Make no mistake – the appearance of a check engine light is not a glitch and it is not something that should be taken lightly. Having one of our ASE certified technicians run a diagnostic scan can mean the difference between catching a potential problem early on and paying for an expensive repair bill later. If you see a check engine light, don’t hesitate to schedule an appointment with one of our trained professionals at Desert Oasis European Auto Service and Repair today.
