Check Engine Light Diagnosis | Feldman Chevrolet New Hudson

Feldman Chevrolet Check Engine Light Diagnosis

The Importance of Checking Your Check Engine Light

Not everyone understands the importance of the check engine light on their car's dashboard. There have been quite a few jokes in television shows and movies about ignoring the light and driving for years with it on. Unfortunately, real-life doesn't work that way, and the vehicle needs to be inspected by a professional technician when the light comes on, or it will eventually break down. Of further importance is when the light comes on, it's typically a minor problem that will be simple to repair. If the problem is ignored, it will cause more issues as the problem can cause surrounding systems to fail, and of course, that means the eventual repairs are going to be far more costly

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A Closer Look At The Check Engine Light

In reality, when the check engine light comes on, there is rarely any noticeable problem with the vehicle or its performance. The issues which cause the light to engage tend to be minor issues such as faulty sensors or blown out relay points in one of the engine's subsystems. Such problems don't prevent the engine from running but are designed to help it run as efficiently as possible. When the systems aren't working as intended, the car may experience a minor loss of power, not enough for the driver even to notice, but enough to cause the engine to work harder than it should. This results in poor gas mileage, and puts excess strain on the vehicle causing it to have a critical failure long before expected, which decreases the value of the car when viewed as a long-term investment. Alternately, there might be problems with the emissions system, causing the car to be substandard for environmental requirements, in which case the vehicle won't pass its next inspection and require the repairs anyway to remain registered and legal for daily driving.

Reasons the Light Might Come On

One reason people don't take the check engine light seriously is bnecasue it doesn't fully explain the issue at hand. For one thing, the information would be useless to the layman who doesn't always understand the cause of the problem or its importance. At best, they might do an internet search for the damaged part, either find misinformation or simply not understand the technical jargon describing what the compromised system does. With that said, there are a number of reasons the light might come on, which could be the actual problematic part or there might be a bad sensor that isn't reading the part to be working correctly and sending bad information to the vehicle computer.

Oxygen Sensor: This can cause your vehicle to use a lot more gas than it needs to. In addition to that, the damaged sensors can damage spark plugs and the catalytic converter.
The gas cap is damaged or missing.
Catalytic Converter: When this happens, your car may run at a higher temperature, you may experience reduced fuel economy, and you may not pass an emissions test.
Mass Airflow Sensor: This can damage our O2 sensor, spark plugs, and catalytic converter or be the root of more costly repairs down the road.
Spark Plugs: Your car will perform poorly until they are replaced.

OR more significant issues like low oil pressure, engine overheating, or even a punctured tire.

What To Expect when a Technician Addresses the Issue

A technician is a trained professional rather than an independent mechanic who might have a talent for car repairs but doesn't necessarily understand each vehicle’s engineering needs according to make and model. In the past, such mechanics were acceptable as they could conduct most repairs, and quite frankly, they tended to be a bit less expensive.

However, today's cars have tighter tolerances and need to be worked on by people with individual car manufacturers’ education and training. The training doesn't just teach technicians symptoms of problems and how to replace parts but includes an overview of reading engineering schematics and understanding how the individual engine systems or subsystems work and why they are essential. Maintenance and repairs on modern cars need to be conducted by specialty technicians who understand not just how to “make it work” but how to do it properly to ensure the vehicle gets a full life span at peak efficiency.

Diagnose and Correct the Problem

The reason a professional technician needs to take a look at the vehicle when the check engine light comes on is they have the proper tool for the make and model of vehicle to plug into the computer and get a code for where the problem is occurring. They can then look up the code to determine a starting point for conducting diagnostic tests based on their experience with the vehicle, or in some cases recognize a recalled part which needs to be replaced. This technique allows the professional to fix the actual problem in one shot rather than randomly replacing parts at the owner's expense until they finally find the one responsible.

Schedule an Appointment With Feldman Chevrolet New Hudson Today

Chevrolet uses unique technology on all of their vehicles to help them perform at their best day in and day out. This is why it is particularly important to bring your car in to see our factory-trained and certified professionals at Feldman Chevrolet of New Hudson for our check engine light diagnosis. Feldman Chevrolet is the preferred by drivers around the New Hudson area for all their vehicle needs - from simple routine car maintenance to more serious repairs and services. Our Chevrolet service pros are here to help keep your car running like new. If you are looking for a brake inspection, tire rotation or oil change, let the GM-certified professionals at our service shop deliver the quality auto maintenance you deserve. We will make every effort to complete the job in a timely and efficient manner so you can get your car back on the road as soon as possible. All while only using OEM Certified Parts.

We make it easy to get your car serviced with convenient weekday and Saturday hours, made to fit your busy schedule. We are happy to be the go-to certified dealer and service center for drivers in the Novi and Brighton areas as well.

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Complimentary Dealership Amenities

Experienced technicians
State-of-the-art equipment
24/7 towing service
Complimentary tire rotations for life (when your four tires are purchased from a Feldman location)