Check Engine light: A brilliant idea?

Yesterday I rode with a young lady in her '99 Civic. During the ride I noticed her Check Engine light was on and asked her about it. She replied that it had been on for about a week. She wasn't in a hurry to get it looked at because the last time she did, it cost her many hundreds of dollars to get it to turn off "...and the car's driving fine, so...".

She won't even take it in to get the code read, seeming to have the idea that ignorance is bliss.

So, my idea: Most cars these days have digital odometers. How much trouble would it be to have the odometer alternately flash the trouble code(s) and its normal mileage reading, and continue to do so until the light went off?

Wouldn't this make it less of a hardship for unwilling owners to at least know what the problem is? They could do it with a quick phone call to a garage rather than bother with appointments and lengthy waiting.

Wouldn't this possibly result in at least a few more cars getting repaired more quickly?

How come no one has done this yet?

Comments?

Reply to
Hugo Schmeisser
Loading thread data ...

Some autos have the codes easily accessible. The problem is that many people out there would continue to drive the vehicle regardless of how many lights or warning devices are on there. Look at all the ones who drive around with the SEL, or other warning lights on, as long as the engine runs and the vehicle moves they just keep driving it until it dies. Then they go online and complain about how there vehicle is junk and how can these companies get away with building them. No personal responsibility for the lack of vehicle maintenance.

The young lady is another version, well it cost me a lot to get it turned off, You should have asked her what they did to the vehicle since they don't just "turn it off" Sounds like the typical owner of today.

Perfect example was in a radio commercial for an ambulance chaser I heard. "many times injuries and accidents are not your fault, so look around and to see if you may have a reason to call XXXXXXX and consult with us"

Reply to
Steve W.

Disposable society - If they want to treat a car as a disposable item vs. maintain it properly, they pay the price...

Reply to
Pete C.

Doing that would allow those nasty shade-tree mechanics to diagnose their own problems, and do their own work, without paying an actual, for-real, factory-approved, somebody-certified mechanic to do it, and not even require them to spend the money on one of those facny-schmancy code-reader widgets that are otherwise worthless!

Breakdown of the american economy would surely follow, plunging us into a dark age like none see before in the history of the world! HOW DARE YOU suggest such a thing, you damn commie scum????

(Anybody got a crowbar? My tounge seems to be stuck in my cheek...)

Reply to
Don Bruder

I know that as of about 5 years ago prototype GM trucks had a scrolling message center below the odometer which would be ideal for this purpose. Now I haven't been in any of the production versions and I don't know if it was ever implemented exactly as you describe, but I agree it'd be a great idea.

nate

Reply to
N8N

I'm imaging this as a second use for the odometer, and totally automatic.

People would tend to notice the MIL and the flashing code at coming on at the same time, and could then just make a phone call. I can't see this at all being hard to do, or even a useless idea.

Reply to
Hugo Schmeisser

If you went back 50 years to the time when most cars had an ammeter, temperature gauge with numbers and an oil pressure gauge I think you would find that many drivers completely ignored those sources of information about engine condition too. Most drivers wait until there is a problem that can't be ignored - smoke from the hood, engine won't start, loud knocking sound, etc., before taking action. The numeric trouble codes would be soo much Latin to most people and would be ignored as well.

Reply to
John S.

Memory is cheap - there's no reason that the message couldn't be "right bank O2 sensor trim full lean" instead of "27" for example.

nate

Reply to
N8N

Hey, Hugo, you've got my vote! s

Reply to
sdlomi2

Even 1980s Cadillacs can display engine diagnostics the climate control's digital readout, but some buttons have to be pressed to do this, and display is in numbers, not English words.

I don't see why the seatbelt buzzer can't be replaced by something that speaks the diagnostics, maybe by replacing the seatbelt buzzer with a speaker or by going through the car's stereo. The extra cost would be nil, if anything.

Reply to
do_not_spam_me

Or "check fuel cap" (one of the most common causes of check engine lights is a loose or missing fuel cap).

Reply to
Timothy J. Lee

Sadly, you may be right.

An example: Back in the summer I had occasion to attend an auto machine shop. Sitting on one of the benches were some pistons with curious flat spots on part of their crowns. I asked the machinist what it was, and he said it was from the pistons striking the head on their upward travel. It seems the owner was *completely* unaware that anything was wrong, even though the engine sounded like large ball-bearings being vigorously shaken in a coffee can. Eventually something broke and the engine seized up.

Still, the flashing odo is a good idea, I think.

Reply to
Hugo Schmeisser

Possibly with a message describing the severity of the problem. e.g. for lack of oil pressure "STOP ENGINE NOW" or similar.

I agree with you re: gauges; some people *need* red blinky lights to warn them of a problem. Personally I would prefer to have both; the red light to immediately draw my attention to the REAL GAUGE that will tell me what the problem is...

nate

Reply to
Nate Nagel

  1. Ignorance IS bliss.
  2. OEM don't want you to bring the car in, so they will not add more flashing lights and whatnot to encourage you to do so. OEM think about warranty period, not concerned about after warranty expire...
Reply to
dnoyeB

============== ============== Hugo,

OK......I've read the thread to date, 18 posts, and here's what I'm getting out of it. (The Thread..not jest your post)

A flashing ck. eng. light, or any other warning light, jest ain't doing it for some folks because they're worried about being FORCED to pay for a repair when they get to the shop......whether they want the repair or not.

The odo should flash codes for the driver because then the driver could make a phone call to diagnose their problem, and when it got to the point of being FORCED to make a repair they could hang up.

Warning lights are ignored.

Paying someone to retrieve the codes.....well....that's unacceptable. (the actuall posts were a bit more fervent than this statement)

Fancy machines designed to perform these duties.....are well.... jest a ploy, and only a fool really thinks that they're necessary. (again, not represenitive verbatim of the actuall replies) (honey coated)

The only thing these fancy tools are good for is to retrieve some number from the computer, that can then be defined by a 2 or 3 words.

Once this tool tells you something along the lines of...... "EVAP leak detected"...... well........it'll be easy to fix then.

If a odo flashes a code P0301, the driver can make the ole ringy/dingy and be told that they have a random misfire....... and the poor slob on the other end of the phone will be able to tell them how much it will cost.

The next time the phone rings at the shop and some guy sitting in the parking lot at the ole AutoZonedOut store tells me he has a code P0700.......I better dang shure tell him what it means, and give him a price on the absolute cure for the situation, or..........I'm a greasy, slob of, illiterate, backwoods, good fer nutt'n crook.

It's not a money thing.......... It's a rip-off thing.

ANY WHOOOOO........... that's "some" of what I gits out of the thread so far. Not all.......jest some.

===THIS IS YER ODOMETER SPEAKING===

CODE P0300 CODE P0300 CODE P0300

75 mph 72 mph 70 mph

CODE PO700 CODE P0700 CODE P0700

(what duh ??)

69 mph 66 mph 63 mph

CODE P0635 CODE P0635 CODE P0635

(oh sheet)

60 mph 58 mph 55 mph

--2 minutes later-- (screw it)

57 mph 60 mph 67 mph 72 mph 75 mph 75 mph 75 mph

(ringy/dingy....hey...you....I got me these codes pop'n up....... no...i'm sit'n in my living room...why??)

==Random Thoughts== Tell all you guys that made this thread 18 posts long, call ANY shop tomorrow and tell em yer drive'n any GM vehical you want....bout 1992 or up...and give em them codes.....and do a repost tomorrow and let me know what you got.

this is a silly thread.....

~:~ MarshMonster ~sips his crownroyal......reaches fer his stash~

Reply to
Marsh Monster

Not to worry..GM has the answer! Onstar will be your genie. GM has an ad on tv...Single parent Mom with young daughter...Look Honey, we got our readout from GM, our vehicle does not have any problems! We can now go to JellyStone Park, without any worries!!

Into the van they go, driving off into the sunset! ( Isn't this grand)

Another note Onstar, some day, might have to report you to the EPA if you don't get it fixed!!

Reply to
Andy & Carol

Yes, we hear that phrase repeated all the time when it somes to computers. And yes, the cost of storage has come down notably from the days of core memory.

However to add such a feature and have it provide useful information to the driver would involve a lot more than adding a memory chip I'm afraid. For example the OBD would have to be reprogrammed to convert

032AC to The Transmission Chip A1 has just consumed itself, stop the car now. And since an OBD may throw more than one error code the diagnostic tree one would have to follow to interpret the information would also have to be added. Additionally, car manufacturers would have to justify the cost in light of the fact that very few people would pay attention to that bit of added technical information. In other words why pay to add a source of complex information about the functioning of automotive systems if the existing simple ones are being widely ignored.
Reply to
John S.

Why don't we all just issue ourselves a degree in on-board diagnostics, programming and electrical engineering for our cars and while we are at it issue a degree as a medical doctor so we no longer have to pay those outrageous co-pays and percentages for interpretation of x-rays, MRI's and catscans for diagnosing our body..............Fact is that there are rip-offs out there usually found by the people who shop by price for their repairs but their are just as many mechanics who continually invest in themselves with continuous education and tool purchases so that when your car is brought in to them they can diagnose the vehicle in a brief amount of time (Brevity is customer driven). Many times the computer will generate multiple codes but only one of them will be the cause. In most cases a properly educated mechanic will know which code is the actual cause of the light coming on thereby saving you time and money by not fixing everything the computer reads. Otherwise you can do it yourself or shop by price and then by trial and error start fixing the codes one at a time (in order I suppose) until the light stays out. Computers, as advanced as they are, cannot think on their own, they can only interpret and offer support.

Reply to
Ken

The pistons striking the head????? Now that's compression!!!! Maybe they struck the valves.

I agree - the information can be useful for some of us. I've got a

2004 Volvo V70 that uses a small three line window to display the usual milage information. It also displays warnings about door ajar, which light is burned out, low coolant, etc. And it displays a somewhat complete set of warning messages for the engine, transmission, etc. I use it.

OTOH, my daughter and son-in-law own 2003 Volvo V70 with essentially the same screen and neither of them has any idea what the information on the screen means.

I'm thinking of the old saying about horses and water right now.....

Reply to
John S.

No, the *head*. The shape of the impression in the piston crown was that of the edge of the combustion chamber in the head.

It seems the bearings were severely worn, with the result that the pistons were travelling further upward than they should have.

Reply to
Hugo Schmeisser

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.