Check Engine Light: Not to be Ignored : Car Maintenance

People tell me all the time that my check engine light is on, but my car is running fine must be a glich or the light comes on but goes right back off can't be much wrong LOL!!. People you need to realize that your check engine light is the best early warning system you can have, especially if your car is '96 or newer. I could sit here half the day and explain the inner workings and theory behind the modern check engine light and when I was done you would be lost, so I'm going to tell you in simple terms. When your check engine light comes on in any vehicle '96 and newer there is a problem that needs to be corrected before you do damage to exspensive parts. The old days of check engine lights coming on and going to the local parts store and having them pull the code telling you what it is you buy a part go home put the part on and dis-connecting the battery cable for a minute and re-connecting and everything being fine is over..The check engine light of today is a very critical diagnostic tool. Vehicles of today are the smartest they have ever been and actually for repair the easiest if you know what your doing. It is not practical for the average car owner to diagnose and repair his own check engine light. And as for going and having someone pull the code and telling you what the code is, is only going to have you buy a bunch of parts you dont need.Then you have to clear it or the problem will still be there, and pulling the battery cable off doesn't get it any more. Everything on your car today is controlled or checked by a computer and any difference in readings when it does these check will set a check engine light. Your car might have a O2 sensor code in it but the O2 sensor could be good and you could have a bad water temp sensor..So getting someone to correctly diagnose your vehicle is the key..You should look for shops that have certified mechanics in OBD2 diagnostics, and the dealer is not always the best place..Some of the best shops around are independant shops, but beware you get what you pay for..When I was still working in a shop everyday we would get call after call at lunch time asking how much an hour we charged.You dont shop for car repair like you shop for shoes.Look for a nice clean reputable shop that offers things like we repair it right the first time or the next time its free, if they are offering this it says two things they are confident and they stand behind what they do, also call the better business office and see what they say and if you are real skeptical you can call your state attorney general's office and ask about any complaints. But the best way of finding a shop is use your own experiences and go with that gut feeling your get it is usually right. But as for that check engine light when it comes on it means $$$$ and the longer it stays on the more $$$$ it means, I always told customers that I think that the manufacturers should have put a dollar sign in the little window instead of the words check engine because that would have gotten peoples attention quicker...And if your light is on but your car is running fine, I call that the silent killer because it its doing damage and you dont even know it..I had a customer with a BMW have his check engine light on and I noticed it when he brought it in for a oil change he tells me oh its been on for about a month and the car runs fine the hell with it..I tried to explain it to him but he knew more about it than I did so I said ok..About 3 months later when we were putting the new motor in it I told him remember when that light was on...now he wishes he had listened..There is a saying mechanic's like to say and it goes like this: Pay me now or Pay me later, the later just means the more..You figure it out..

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