Auto Tips

No one wants to see their Check Engine Light come on – it can mean an expensive trip to the mechanic or serious car engine problems. But for many drivers, it is simply a source of confusion since without other indicators, this small yellow or red light on the instrument panel can be a serious source of frustration. While there are no hard and fast rules about what the light means, there are a number of common reasons for the Check Engine Light to come on. The Check Engine Light is connected…

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Have you ever had an experience like this in San Diego? You drive through the one of those automatic car washes. When you get to the end, where the dryer is blowing, your check engine light started flashing! You fear the worst, but within a block or two, the light stopped flashing, but stayed on. By the next day, the light was off. You wonder; "What was going on?" Well, it's actually a good lesson in how the Check Engine light works. Your air intake system has a sensor that measures…

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Did you know that today's cars carry more computer power than the Apollo 121 Lunar Module that landed on the moon in 1969? New cars have as many as 12 networked computers and over five miles (eight kilometers) of wiring. In fact, for the last decade or so, computers have been controlling about 85% of your vehicle's functions. Cars have sensors for manifold air temperature, coolant temperature, manifold air pressure, airflow, throttle position, vehicle speed and oxygen content. All of this…

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