check engine light came on

sorry its a 2001 toyota corrolla S btw sooo sorry im rushed and worried at the same time

sorry its a 2001 toyota corrolla S btw sooo sorry im rushed and worried at the same time

You really need to have it checked. Odds are it is nothing too terrible that about $270 won't fix. LOL.

Lots of auto parts stores will check it for free in hopes of you buying the part to fix it from said parts store. Call around. One national chain that USUALLY does this is AutoZone.

But, unless you pretty much know what to do with the information, or really trust whatever advice is thrown you at the parts store, it still doesn't help you much.

I would prefer to have my mechanic check and then give me the "good news."

You will need an OBD II code scanner to determine why the check engine light came on. Your mechanic should have one, or as timbirr suggested, some parts stores will scan the codes for free.

Once you have the codes, you can post the code numbers (not the parts store's interpretation of the codes) here for some more advice.

Some emissions components have a longer warranty than the powertrain warranty so depending on what is wrong, it may be better to take it to a Toyota dealer for repair.

AutoZone stores will allow you to pullthe codes yourself, or they will pull them for you for free. (I encourage you to do it yourself, it's very easy and you can do it in under 5 minutes.)

Go to AutoZone (other car parts stores probably have Loaner Tool Programs too) and get the OBD II Scan Tool. They will hold your driver license as security if you want to use the tool in the parking lot, or they will sell the tool and give a Full Refund later if you want to take the tool home and use it in your garage. Either way, there is a data port along the bottom edge of your car's dash board, roughly in the area over your left leg while you are driving (some cars have a cover over the data port, in which case the cover must be clearly labelled as the data port). Plug the scan tool into the data port, and turn the ignition to ON, but not Start. The codes will be displayed, and the scan tool can reset them after you have made a list.

In another post, you said you have a 2001. My guess is that you need a new O2 Sensor. Replacing this part is similar to replacing a spark plug -- it takes the same skill set and nearly identical tools.

okay i found out what my code is by going to Autozone and getting the diagnostic. this is my code: P0171. k guys what is this mean? tomorrow i have an appt with my mechanic to ck it out. i hope it is not that much. below the code thing it said "too lean". help me out pls. thanks :)

Could be a number of things. I had the same problem and cleaned my MAF with a $3.49 can of electrical contact cleaner (even though the manufactuer "forbids" this practice) and haven't had a problem since.

The following web site explains the code a little better....if the suggestion be to replace the MAF, ask about cleaning it instead -- it's nice to do the "forbidden" everyonce in a while....

how would i do that? im a gurl and love to figure stuff out by myself. but i probably cant i guess i will wait till what my mechanic says :( i will post what happens when he calls also so i can get feedback.

Well, you already got the mechanic lined up and I hate to see a working person lose money, so I would suggest going along with it now...especially since it could be something else....

However, two cavets, if the mechanic can't for certain convince you the problem has been isolated somewhere else, you can't mention cleaning the MAF before they go and start replace idle sensors, O2 sensors, etc.

By the way, they may WANT to replace the MAF, since most makers recommend replacement rather than cleaning -- but you should talk them into cleaning instead.

Cleaning it is simple, although there are a couple of gotcha's/ If you are interested "google is your friend" as someone else around here loves to say....try plugging in the totally foreign phrase "cleaning MAF" LOL

problem has been isolated somewhere else, you can't mention cleaning the MAF before they go and start replace idle sensors, O2 sensors, etc.

I meant to say "however, a cavet, if the mechanic can't for certain convince you the problem has been isolated somewhere else, you should ask about cleaning the MAF before they go and start replacing idle sensors, O2 sensors, etc."

It would be helpful if you quoted previous posts so people know what kind of symptoms the car has and what year, model, mileage, the car is.

P0171 means that the system for Bank 1 is too lean. The most common cause of this condition is an O2 sensor that is only marginally working. A competent technician can check the O2 sensor output and confirm this.

k guys my mechanic called this is what is wrong; the air filter was extremely dirty leaving the MAF very dirty as well. They replaced the air filter and cleaned the MAF the light came off they said if it comes back on it the next couple of days or weeks to take it back to them cause it possible can be the O2 sensor but they cked and it was fine. So in total it cost me 169.19 (including a oil change that i needed). what you think ?

Oh, I don't know, I hate to second guess mechanics, and I don't know how involved they got checking vacuum leaks possibilities, etc.

An oil change can edge on $30. Cleaning the MAF would probably edge on a half-hour shop time. So, now you are talking $60-70.

Air Filter is no big deal, but you probably got charged a separate charge for it, even though they basically had it out when they did the MAF work -- so around $50 for that (just guessing that a ultra high end filter would be $30). So, with tax, license, destination charges that could be pretty close.

So, while it was no discount job, I can't say they took you to the cleaners.

Of course, doing it all yourself, you would have hit about $30 (not including your laborLOL).

That sounds right to me.