Confess if you drive around with your CEL on

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Yes, my Xterra has to go through several cycles before going out after I tripped the antifreeze level after changing and attempting to purge the air out of system
 
My mk4 GLI had the dreaded p0420 code. These cars had this code very often and sometimes it was a false positive. I had no vacuum leaks, good and operational o2 sensors, good MAF and a functioning cat. Car ran great. Drove with the light on for that code for 80k miles.
 
Of course I wouldn't drive around with the CEL light on. I'd get one of those cheap little code readers, permanently mount it in the car, and clear the code as soon as it occurred. Perhaps even while driving. "Clearing codes on the fly."

Seriously, no, I generally fix any code throwing problems as soon as I can get to it.
 
My wifes piece of junk chevy is always throwing some code. Usually its from the ill designed evaporative emissions system.

I pretty much gave up fixing that piece of garbage.
 
Sure do. My Marauder throws EGR flow codes because the DPFE sensor is bad. EGR valve works fine, but the sensor is integrated and I don't feel like spending $130 on an entire valve.
 
My cars: Most of them have the CEL on for one reason or another. Oh well
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Originally Posted By: TinyVoices
My mk4 GLI had the dreaded p0420 code. These cars had this code very often and sometimes it was a false positive. I had no vacuum leaks, good and operational o2 sensors, good MAF and a functioning cat. Car ran great. Drove with the light on for that code for 80k miles.
 
A couple of weeks ago the "service engine soon" light came on, on out 2001 Impala. I puled into Advance Auto and borrowed their code reader and there were no codes. That light went out and has not come back on and I still have no clue why it was on.
 
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I can't do it. Just can't. On the Mazda its new and if it comes on I'll address it. On the truck, every time its come on its only been for something that is debilitating so it has to get fixed. Last one was a bad MAP sensor. Mercedes pre dates CEL's.
 
Originally Posted By: JimPghPA
A couple of weeks ago the "service engine soon" light came on, on out 2001 Impala. I puled into Advance Auto and borrowed their code reader and there were no codes. That light went out and has not come back on and I still have no clue why it was on.
could be a gas cap left loose.
 
Originally Posted By: aquariuscsm
My dad and my gf's dad both just covered theirs up with a piece of black electrical tape haha
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Nice.
The only time a check engine light got really severe for me was with a faulty coil pack on a Toyota Echo. That CEL actually blinked. The car was misfiring and dumping fuel into the cat - a worthwhile alarm for sure.
 
Originally Posted By: L_Sludger
Originally Posted By: TinyVoices
My mk4 GLI had the dreaded p0420 code. These cars had this code very often and sometimes it was a false positive. I had no vacuum leaks, good and operational o2 sensors, good MAF and a functioning cat. Car ran great. Drove with the light on for that code for 80k miles.




Yep. That was me as embarrassing as it is to admit. This was back in the early 2010s and the car was slammed on cheap coilovers and sitting on wheels worth 1/2 the value of the car. It was so low I could push small gravel around with the lip and the exhaust touched the ground on flat roads.
 
My LR3 gets one every now and then for the Evap leak detection pump. Have had other more pressing issues to deal with. It's off for now. Seems to come on more in the winter.
 
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