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Check engine light is on. Autozone yeah or nay?


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This is the first time I've had a check engine light come on on 10 years.  I seem to recall on one of the old sites that taking it to Autozone, O'Reilly, etal was a pointless endeavor.  I'd like to have an idea as to what's going on before taking it to a mechanic because I don't have one that I know well in this area yet.

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What Autozone and O'Reilly's can do for you is hook up an OBD reader, which will tell you what codes your engine computer is "throwing."  That then will give you a good idea as to why you have a Check Engine Light.  They will look up the codes or you can do it/confirm the issue.

Some vehicles have a sequence with the ignition switch that will give you some of the codes also.  Sometimes there's just one or two codes, sometimes several, depending on the issue, and they may point directly to the problem or it may be more indirect.  Post them here or google and we can kind of help with that.

The mechanic will do the same thing, and may or may not share the results with you as part of their "diagnosis."

A good garage, very old school but they do good work, is Marlow Automotive on Central https://marlowautomotive.com/

Kind of in your neck o the woods.

 

Edited by TwiceHorn
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2 hours ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

 You're right.  I'm doing this.  And checking the gas cap. 

Don't go too cheap on the OBD.  Get one that allows you to reset the warning.  You gonna have to read reviews to make sure the 'reset' function actually works.  But tighten the gas cap first.

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15 hours ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

 You're right.  I'm doing this.  And checking the gas cap. 

You don't want a dedicated scanner tool. You want an OBD2 bluetooth dongle and the Torque app. Leave the dongle plugged in and check everything from your phone, erase codes, use it as a heads up display on the windshield. All kinds of cool stuff.

Edited by RPM
dammit
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1 hour ago, Irish Wrist Watch said:

That's worth a try. More of a dark oil, really. Keep the tube in your console. Your wife/girlfriend/boyfriend will have a new appreciation for your versatility.

Might be a stretch, butt, user name kinda checks out.

Edited by Al Czervik
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On 8/26/2020 at 5:51 PM, Knoxtnhorn said:

This is the first time I've had a check engine light come on on 10 years.  I seem to recall on one of the old sites that taking it to Autozone, O'Reilly, etal was a pointless endeavor.  I'd like to have an idea as to what's going on before taking it to a mechanic because I don't have one that I know well in this area yet.

 

On 8/27/2020 at 8:41 AM, kevwun said:

Yeah, they are cheap and very useful.  Mine was $50 and it will reset codes.

 

Read the quoted post below, he is absolutely right.

 

On 8/27/2020 at 12:02 PM, RPM said:

You don't want a dedicated scanner tool. You want an OBD2 bluetooth dongle and the Torque app. Leave the dongle plugged in and check everything from your phone, erase codes, use it as a heads up display on the windshield. All kinds of cool stuff.

 

I've had this version for about 5 years and it was money well spent. I use Torque on an Android too and it's great.

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Update: Effing lulz.  It was the gas cap.  In my defense, I hadn't had to get gas in over a month.  Check engine light popped on a few days ago.  Filled up the tank yesterday and ta-da, the light went off.  I honestly thought @Al Czervik was kidding.

All good because I took the advice and ordered an OBD censor.  We're going to be doing a lot of RV traveling in the near future, so it'll be good to have something to help out when away from home and our mechanic.

 

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2 minutes ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

Update: Effing lulz.  It was the gas cap.  In my defense, I hadn't had to get gas in over a month.  Check engine light popped on a few days ago.  Filled up the tank yesterday and ta-da, the light went off.  I honestly thought @Al Czervik was kidding.

All good because I took the advice and ordered an OBD censor.  We're going to be doing a lot of RV traveling in the near future, so it'll be good to have something to help out when away from home and our mechanic.

 

<you're GD right gif from Breaking Bad>

OBD on order=money well spent.

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32 minutes ago, Knoxtnhorn said:

Update: Effing lulz.  It was the gas cap.  In my defense, I hadn't had to get gas in over a month.  Check engine light popped on a few days ago.  Filled up the tank yesterday and ta-da, the light went off.  I honestly thought @Al Czervik was kidding.

All good because I took the advice and ordered an OBD censor.  We're going to be doing a lot of               in                  , so it'll be good to have               to help out when away from          and our           .

 

fifm

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