Please wait while the page loads...

How many miles can you drive with the check engine light?

It could be anything from a bad sensor to plug wires needing to be replaced. Since each check engine code has its own level of severity, it is ordinarily difficult to predict how many miles you can be secure in driving with the warning light on. If you check engine light is flashing, we recommend that you pull over and contact Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise to assist determine if your vehicle is secure to drive in or if we recommend a tow truck. The safest bet is to decipher the code and then plan your strategy accordingly.

What could cause the check engine light to come on in a Jeep Wrangler?

When your check engine light comes on, this could be as simple as tightening or replacing your gas cap. Likewise, the check engine light could also be a warning of a significant problem that could cause serious damage to your engine and come with a hefty and costly repair bill. Depending on your make and model, the check engine light will illuminate or blink. A steady and continuous glow generally means something less serious but a flashing check engine light signifies that your vehicle’s engine is in meaningful trouble and useful service is required quickly. If your check engine light is flashing in your Jeep Wrangler, we very suggest not to drive the vehicle and schedule Jeep service today. Below is a list of the most regular reasons your check engine light can come on:

  • Your O2 Sensor (Oxygen Sensor) needs to be replaced. The Oxygen sensor, known as the O2 sensor, measures the amount of oxygen in your exhaust system. If there is excess oxygen in your exhaust system, fuel burns more promptly and your car will be less efficient when it comes to fuel economy. So what hits if I don’t replace your O2 sensor? A defective sensor can not only affect your miles per gallon, but it can cause meaningful damage to your catalytic converter and your Jeep Wrangler's spark plugs. The O2 sensor sends data to the vehicle’s onboard computer to determine the definitely appropriate mixture of air and fuel that enters the cylinders in your engine. A defective O2 sensor can also cause a vehicle to fail an emissions test.
  • Your mass airflow sensor (known as MAF) needs to be replaced. The mass airflow sensor in your Jeep Wrangler is what determines how much fuel is needed to run your engine efficiently by measuring the amount of air entering the engine. As a part of the engine management system, the mass airflow sensor helps adjust to certain changes, like altitude. If your Jeep Wrangler is having trouble starting, idling rough or has a sudden quick change in the position of the throttle pedal, this could be a crucial sign of a defective mass airflow sensor.
  • Issues with any aftermarket items. An aftermarket alarm, exhaust or other item can wreak extreme havoc on your Jeep Wrangler if it’s not installed correctly. These aftermarket parts and accessories can drain the battery, trigger the check engine light, or even impede the car from starting. If these issues sound familiar, bring your Wrangler to Jeep and have our team of gifted certified mechanics ensure that your aftermarket items were installed properly and aren't causing any issue. Getting accessories, especially aftermarket parts and accessories, or using OEM parts first place might cost a little bit more but could assist you save considerably from having to get poor work and damage caused by poor installation work corrected.
  • The battery is low or dead. The battery in your Jeep Wrangler is each vital. Without a vehicle battery, your vehicle won’t start, light up the road ahead, play the radio or charge your phone. Today’s vehicle batteries last much longer than they did a few decades ago, and they don't absolutely require maintenance. The price of a new one depends on the type of Jeep you drive, but check our current service coupons and specials.
  • One of the most regular and frequent cause is that your Jeep Wrangler gas cap is loose, damaged or missing. The gas cap for your Jeep Wrangler serves various purposes. It prevents unpredictable gas fumes from being released when you aren't driving, it seals the fuel system and helps control pressure within the fuel tank. What hits if you have a defective fuel cap? If your gas cap is old or has a ruptured seal, you can lose fuel through evaporation which will result in more trips to the pump and be more costly. Luckily, to replace a gas cap isn't pricey. If your check engine light turns on promptly after you put gas in your Jeep Wrangler, first thing you should check is to make sure the cap isn’t loose — or that it's still on your car’s roof or at the fuel pump.
  • Your catalytic converter is bad or going bad. The catalytic converter is a part of your Jeep Wrangler’s exhaust system. The catalytic converter's function is to turn the carbon monoxide created by the combustion process into carbon dioxide. A damaged catalytic converter is frequently caused by consistently neglected maintenance, which is why Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise offers a free multi-point inspection with each Jeep service. If you have an issue with your catalytic converter and don't get it repaired, your Jeep Wrangler will not pass an emissions test, show a lack of engine performance and will negatively affect your fuel economy. Your vehicle may run at a higher temperature, too, which can cause other dangerous problems from overheating.
  • Your Jeep Wrangler has a vacuum leak. Each Jeep Wrangler has a vacuum system that performs a wide variety of functions. The vacuum system also helps lower harmful emissions by routing the fumes as gasoline evaporates through the engine. If you notice that your RPM is high in idle or randomly surges, a vacuum leak could be the cause. Over time, vacuum hoses can dry out and crack, especially if they’re exposed to intense heat or extreme cold.
  • New Spark Plugs or Plug Wires are needed for your Jeep Wrangler. The spark plugs are the part of your engine that ignites the air/fuel mixture in the combustion chamber of your car. This explosion is what moves the pistons and makes the engine run smooth. The spark plug wires deliver the spark from the ignition coil to the spark plugs. If your spark plugs or spark plug wires are bad or old, you will experience a noticeable poor performance and decreased power. In some extreme cases, your engine will have trouble starting or continuing to run. Worn spark plugs and plug wires can cause obstructed catalytic converter or damage to ignition coils and O2 sensors, leading to more pricey repairs.

How much does it cost to get the engine light checked?

The check engine light warns of issues ranging from a gas cap that's not properly tightened to a more serious failure like a bad catalytic converter or a problem with one of the car's oxygen sensors, so it good to get the proper code reading and diagnosis. The average cost for a check engine light diagnosis & testing is generally between $88 and $111. The good news, Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise offers totally free multi-point inspections and free diagnostics, in most cases, to support determine the cause of your check engine light.

Check Engine Light Service Jeep Wrangler

What do you do when you’re driving along in your Jeep Wrangler and suddenly, a yellow light illuminates on your dash and says "Check Engine". If you’re like most Jeep owners, your heart sinks exceptionally because you may have exactly idea about what that light is trying to tell you or how you should react. The fear of the unknown (or the cost of the unknown) can be just as stressful. But take a deep, tranquil breath and realize the light coming on doesn’t mean you have to pull the vehicle over to the side of the road and call a tow truck, but it is suggested that you get your Jeep Wrangler checked immediately. Ignoring that warning could end up causing considerable, considerable damage to pricey engine parts.

When your Jeep Wrangler's ECM (electronic control module), which is the vehicle's onboard computer, finds a problem in the electronic control system that it can’t appropriate, a computer turns on your check engine light. This amber or yellow light is ordinarily labeled “check engine” or “service engine soon”, or the light may be nothing more than a picture of an engine, or a picture of the engine with the word “check.”

When the light turns on, the ECM stores an engine code or “trouble code” in its memory that can rapidly identify the issue, whether it's a sensor or a failing engine part. This code is read with an electronic scan tool that is used by our Jeep auto repair mechanics at Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise. There are still a number of relatively inexpensive code readers that are designed for do-it-yourselfers, should you pick that route too. While this code will tell you the issue that is detected, a true diagnosis still requires an experienced professional to determine the explicitly appropriate issue and repair it.

What Does the Check Engine Light Mean?

One of the most normally misunderstood lights or indicators in your Jeep Wrangler is the check engine light. The check engine light is part of the vital onboard diagnostics system, and displays in an assortment of different ways. It can say "Check Engine", it can be a symbol of an engine, it can even be a combination of both. This light illuminates in either an amber or red color and is part of the diagnostics system found on your car. Onboard computers increasingly have controlled and monitored car performance since the 80s and do an assortment of things for your Jeep Wrangler. Some of these essential duties include shifting automatic transmissions ignition timing, controlling engine speed, and implementing security control, just to name a few. With that being said, the check engine light can mean an assortment of different things. It can be as simple as your gas cap being loose or as dangerous as engine knocking. If your check engine light is on in your Jeep Wrangler, contact Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise. Contact Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise today! Our Jeep service department can assist you find out what code is turning your check engine light on or diagnose why your check engine light is flashing.

Jeep Wrangler Check Engine Light

A flashing light indicates that the problem is very serious and if not taken care of immediately may result in major and meaningful damage to the car. If the check engine light in your Jeep Wrangler starts flashing, that means that the problem needs attention immediately and your Jeep should be brought in rapidly. This blinking light frequently indicates a severe engine misfire allowing unburned fuel to be dumped into the exhaust system. There it can rapidly raise the temperature of the catalytic converter to a point where damage is likely, requiring an costly and major repair. Some owners ask if spark plugs cause the check engine light to flash? This can definitely be the cause. A defective, old or dirty spark plug can cause the engine to misfire. If your check engine light is constantly flashing, please contact our team of automotive experts at Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise instantly by calling 2085100490. If the problem is entirely ignored or you continue to drive, this can spread to the spark plug wires, catalytic converter, or ignition coils which can lead to a very costly repair.

Is it safe to drive your Jeep Wrangler with the check engine light on?

This question is not very simple because it all depends on the severity of the issue. If the cause is a minor issue, such as a loose gas cap, it should be secure to drive. This is ordinarily indicated by a steady glow of the check engine light. If you notice a difference in the performance of the vehicle, it could be an indication of a more serious problem. If the check engine light is flashing, this means that there is a serious issue and it is advised to service your Jeep Wrangler immediately. Call the experts at Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise by dialing 2085100490 so you can describe the issues. Or lessen your speed and bring your Jeep to our certified mechanics as soon as potential.

Jeep Wrangler Check Engine Light Flashing

Although there are countless potential causes of an illuminated Check Engine Light, we know from years of providing Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that there are various common causes including something as simple as a loose gas cap. Other often common reasons for a Check Engine Light are dirty mass airflow sensor, a malfunction with the fuel injection system, faulty head gasket, broken oxygen sensor, faulty emissions control part, or faulty spark plugs to name a few. No matter what is the root cause of the Check Engine Light, we have the Jeep Certified Technicians and the certified service protocol to isolate the root problem and utterly repair it as needed to restore factory specifications. When this results, the Check Engine Light turns off, and you can leave the service center knowing that your Jeep issue was entirely fixed.

Every Jeep Wrangler was designed with a high-technology performance monitoring system with a computer, and a series of sensors positioned strategically throughout the vehicle on its vital systems. The rapid sensors are continually detecting conditions while sending essential data to the electronic control unit. If the electronic control unit detects that the data is out of factory specifications, the Check Engine Light illuminates telling you that there is a problem. Yet, unfortunately that is the limitation of the Check Engine Light – it won’t tell you what specifically is wrong nor what to do about it. That’s where we come in; Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise provides a Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that isolates the core problem and gives you a recommendation on what to do next from a Exceedingly Certified Service professional.

Will the check engine light reset itself?

The check engine light on your Jeep Wrangler will ordinarily shut itself off if the issue or code that caused it to turn on is fixed. For example, if the cause of your check engine light coming on was a loose gas cap, if it's tightened, the light will quickly turn itself off. Also, if your catalytic converter is working accurately, and you did a lot of stop-and-go driving, that may have turned on the check engine light due to the high usage of the converter. In most cases, your Jeep Wrangler light will go off after about 20-40 miles. If you drive over that amount and the light is still on, you will need to bring it in to Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise so the light and code can be double-checked and reset.

Jeep Wrangler Check Engine Light Codes

The check engine light turning on can be quite intimidating, exceptionally to see that little light on your vehicle’s dashboard suddenly illuminate, but in reality, it is not something that should cause you to shut down in fear right away. If you hear the term, diagnostic trouble codes (DTC), these are just another name for check engine light codes. These are automotive computer codes stored by the ECM, again known as the OBD (on-board computer diagnostic system) in your Wrangler. There are hundreds of different codes that your check engine light can accurately represent. While that sounds daunting, with a little patience, tackling basic diagnostics will give you advantageous knowledge about your car and will again allow that essential Check Engine Light to do what it is really supposed to do: be your guide. Unfortunately, clear and useful car symptoms do not repeatedly accompany an illuminated Check Engine Light. Since there are hundreds of likely OBD codes, there are again hundreds of likely reasons for the light, including:

  • O2 Sensor
  • Ignition system faults
  • Transmission issues
  • Bad Spark Plugs
  • Emissions controls issues
  • Loose Gas Cap or Missing Gas Cap
  • Fuel and air metering systems problems
  • Old Battery
  • Computer output circuit issues

This is why it is essential for someone who does not have a lot of prevailing automotive knowledge to not assume what a code means. If the engine light comes on due to a serious concern, you risk damaging your car further by not repairing the issue right away. When your check engine light comes on, you should get it checked out rapidly by a proficient certified Jeep mechanic. Call Larry H. Miller Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram Boise at 2085100490 today or schedule your check engine light service online today!