What does it mean when the engine light on the car dashboard comes on?
2 Answers
There are many reasons why the engine fault light stays on, the common ones are as follows: 1. The oxygen sensor plug is damaged or loose, causing the air-fuel mixture to be too lean or too rich. 2. Poor quality gasoline that does not meet standards, resulting in insufficient combustion of the air-fuel mixture during engine operation. 3. Poor engine maintenance, spark plugs, ignition coils, fuel pumps, or clogged fuel lines causing poor combustion of the engine air-fuel mixture. 4. The engine requires air for combustion. A dirty car air filter that is not cleaned regularly affects the car's air intake. Long-term clogging can seriously cause the engine fault light to come on.
That day when I was driving, the engine light on the dashboard suddenly turned yellow, which made me panic. I immediately pulled over to check. A similar situation happened last time when I refueled at an unknown gas station—the poor-quality fuel caused emission issues, and the oxygen sensor threw an error. I went to a repair shop to read the fault code, spent 200 yuan to replace the sensor, and it was fixed. Common reasons also include a loose fuel cap causing leaks, a clogged air filter, or worn-out spark plugs with excessive carbon buildup. My advice is not to keep driving when this happens; instead, quickly find a reputable shop for inspection. Delaying repairs might damage the catalytic converter, which is much more expensive to fix. Develop good habits like using quality fuel and performing regular maintenance, such as changing the oil and checking filters every 5,000 kilometers, to minimize such minor issues.
