Jack Bauer <jb@nowhere.com> wrote in news:4568b617$0$16975$baae4c71@news.mindlink.net: > ...did these consumers forums become fair game for discussions on > politics, auto repair, cooking, etc., etc. ? > > bearclaw@cruller.invalid wrote: Well, if it saves money or helps save money then it can go into misc.consumers.frugal-living.

You can buy a code reader for about $100 at places like Pep Boys, AutoZone, etc. Then you can (frugally) read, interpret, and reset the codes yourself. "Zuke" <me@privacy.net> wrote in message news:Pine.OSX.4.64.0611260122110.4029@ucfilespace.uc.edu... | The "check engine" light is a tool for the dealer to make | a lot of service money. Sure it can have it's uses but | so much money goes down the drain for basically useless | stuff like loose gas cap that most people learn to distrust | it. Also when the computer goes that's another huge | expense. Of course with all the complications in the | new engines they are necessary. If mine goes off, I pull | out the battery and reconnect, see if it comes on | again. If it does, I take it somewhere and see what the | codes say. | | | On Sat, 25 Nov 2006, Jack Bauer wrote: | | > ...did these consumers forums become fair game for discussions on politics, | > auto repair, cooking, etc., etc. ? | > | > bearclaw@cruller.invalid wrote: | >> For well over a year, that damned light has been intermittently shining | >> forth from my dashboard array. Sometimes it goes off when I turn on the | >> A/C. Sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes it stays on for a few hours, sometimes | >> for weeks. Then it mysteriously goes out. | >> | >> This is a '97 Kia Sephia RS, the cheapest 4-door model. We bought it for | >> cash in early '99 from a kindergarten teacher. It has been incredibly | >> reliable in light of the terrible consumer and press reviews it has gotten. | >> Yes, it is underpowered (0-60 in fifteen minutes :-), but the mileage is | >> great, the tires are cheap, it doesn't leak or burn oil, and it has never | >> failed to start and run just fine. | >> But that light. That blasted, fornicating light. | >> The dealer couldn't figure it out. Neither could my most trusted | >> independent mechanic. Oil pressure fine, smog system fine, fuel and exhaust | >> fine, everything working just fine. My mechanic even compliments me on the | >> cleanliness of my car's engine. He suggests a little black electrical tape. | >> "Quit spending money on it, just drive it 'till it dies," says he. The man | >> knows his customers. | >> | >> Meanwhile, all this time, every time I check the oil, I note powdery blue | >> crud building up on the positive battery terminal. And every time I see it, | >> I make a mental note to get after it with some baking soda. | >> Naturally, the instant I close the hood, I forget all about it. I then | >> proceed to drive around cringing in anticipation of the inevitable disaster | >> which the Check Engine light warns is looming right around the next corner. | >> | >> Comes early September. It is time to winterize the Kia. I do this myself. | >> While I am under the hood, I think, | >> <light bulb on> "_Now_ is a good time to clean that battery!" | >> </light bulb> <scrape knuckles, drop tools, curse> | >> | >> So I do. The baking soda solution gets the cable ends and the terminals | >> clean of corrosion. The wire brush makes electrical connections shiny. | >> | >> Job finished, everything tight-- turn the key and *hallelujah*! The Check | >> Engine idiot light is *off*! And it has STAYED off! It has not been back on | >> since in the subsequent three months. | >> | >> I cannot *prove* that my nice clean battery terminals were the resolution | >> of that stupid, rotten, stinking, hateful cursed light, but I thought that | >> there might be others in a similar fix (especially Kia owners far and | >> wide... we all know that freakin' light is a common worrisome headache for | >> the brand). | >> If the light is on, check the battery. What can it hurt? | >