It’s hard to know why your check engine light comes on, especially if everything seems normal with your car, truck, or utility vehicle. This is why we here at Miller Brothers Auto Repair run diagnostic checks to determine the exact reason for the check engine warning. This not only saves us time, but it also saves you money. Let’s talk more about the check engine warning below.
How the Check Engine Works
Your engine has a main computer chip that is called the engine control unit or the engine control module. This module is responsible for monitoring all of the vehicle systems while your automobile is running. If something is off by just a little bit, the engine control unit can usually fix the problem itself without alerting you of trouble. In fact, it’s doing this all the time while you are driving.
If there is a problem that the engine control module cannot fix on its own, it will illuminate a warning light on your dashboard. If the problem does not have a specific light, the engine control unit will turn on the check engine light. This is the only way it has of communicating to you that there is something wrong in the engine, so it’s important that you take a check engine light warning seriously.
Why the Check Engine Light Turns On
The reason why your check engine light turns on could be anything from catalytic converter trouble to transmission problems. Specifically, drivers get check engine warnings when the
- Catalytic converter is clogged/malfunctioning and not changing carbon monoxide into a safe gas
- Electrical system is experiencing a problem such as engine control unit or sensor failure
- Exhaust system is clogged or otherwise leaking exhaust in such a way that it should not be
- Fuel system has a problem such as an imbalanced air: fuel ratio or loose gas cap
- Mass airflow sensor is malfunctioning because it is dirty or old
- Oxygen sensor is malfunctioning because it is old or due to some other trouble
- Spark plugs are misfiring because they are dirty or old or because of the engine control unit
- Transmission is having problems whether you can feel them are not
These are the common reasons why the check engine light comes on, and, as you can see, there could be something serious going on underneath the hood that needs to be addressed right away.
Miller Brothers Auto Repair in Somerset WI, would be happy to run a diagnostic check to find out why your check engine light is on. Once we know what the problem is, we can tell you what we need to do to fix it.