Check engine soon light?

[Huskie]

Any way of resetting the check engine soon light on an 01 Dodge ram with out going in to the shop and having them put it on a $$$$$$$ machine?

[IFallsRon]

Unhook the neg battery cable for 10 minutes.

[PierBridge]

Auto Zone will check and clear the code for free.......

[Whoaru99]

As mentioned, unhooking the battery for 10 - 15 minutes should do it. However, the light may come right back on if the condition which set the light has not been corrected.

[Jeremy airjer W]

Why is the check engine light on?

After I believe 1996 manufacturers had to switch to OBDII (On Board Diagnostics version 2.0). The main differences between OBD-I and OBD-II is that there are 02 sensors before and after the catalytic converters to better monitor emissions and the diagnostic capabilities with OBD-II are considerabley more advanced (unlike my spelling). If a problem is detected with either system it will flag the check engine light. OBD-I would allow for the check engine light to be reset by disconecting the battery for a period of time (some manufacturers had other procedures to follow). Disconnecting the battery with an OBD-II system may not turn off the light if the code is a "hard code". These codes are stored and will be there no matter how long the battery is disconnected.

The best thing to do is to figure out why its on and then go from there! The light will continue to come back on until the problem is fixed.

What part of the world are you from? Like Pierbridge mentioned autozone will check it for free. If its emissions related they cannot just clear the code until a reasonable attempt is made to repair the problem. I may be able to reccomend a tech that I know in your area or close to it that would be more than happy to check it out and give you some advise on what to do.

[Valv]

As Airjer and others said Autozone does it for free and they will read the codes.

[HutchBucks]

I have a '01 Dodge Ram...the check engine light has come on twice for me in the last year. 1st time was a bad gas cap(gas tank is pressurized and the gas cap is kinda like a radiator cap where it has to hold up to a certain pressure, if it doesn't there is a sensor that will set it off).

2nd time I just wiped off the rim of the gas filler and the inside of gas cap real good(lotsa dust and grime will cause it to lose seal) light went out after a few restarts of engine. My bro-in-law works at Dodge dealership and said that it's a common occurance. Can't remember how many restarts he said it takes to reset computer though.

[boxcar46]

yep, that happened to me on my 02 dakota. cap was lose. tightened it up and after a short time light went out.

[Huskie]

I'm down in the Fairmont area, there is a Napa and a Autoquest store here. Do they perform the same free service? I have checked the cap and will do so again. It runs great and if the light doesn't go off by Sat. I will try the battery procedure before bringing it in, thanks for the help.

[Ralph Wiggum]

I think in my manual (totally different vehicle, though) it says that after tightening the gas cap, it will take 2-4 days for the light to reset itself.

[Jeremy airjer W]

In order for the light to reset the computer will continue to monitor the failed component. If it passes repeatedly for a predetermined amount of key cycles/drive cycles (could be any where from 5 on up depending on the manufacturer), the computer will turn off the check engine light.

Unfortuneatly I don't know a whole lot of guys in southern Minnesota. Northern Minnesota is a different story.

[PierBridge]

I doubt Napa would read your codes Autoquest maybe, you should call both to make sure.

Instead of paying the dealer fee "probably $$$, Air?" you could by a Code reader and do it yourself, I think you can get a half decent one for around a $100.

Good Luck,let us no how it turns out.

[Jeremy airjer W]

In the metro your looking at an average of $100. This includes reading the codes as well as the first hour of diagnostic time . (rarely is anyone every charged for more than an hour)

I think that Precision Tune will read the codes for a $20 or $30 dollar fee and will charge you additional for the diagnostic time if any is needed.

Autozone and some other parts stores will do it for free and sell you the part that is setting the code knowing full well that other things can set the code for that part. Most of these people have no diagnostic experience or any professional automotive experience in general. You get what you pay for!!

Outside of the metro you could be looking at $50 on up for the same service.

Our shop is at $99.95 For diagnostic time. Some of the dealers in the area are at $120+ for electrical Diagnostis. If I find something stupid like loose gas cap or something left unplugged or a burnt out brake light setting the abs light on I usually but not always () will wave the diagnostic charge.

You can buy your own but you can spend way more throwing parts at it than just bringing it in to a shop you can trust. A scan tool is a diagnostic tool not a crystal ball. They will give you clues as to the nature of the problem, they will not however hold your hand and show you exactly what the problem is!!! I see it time and time again. A car comes in for some driveability complaint open the hood to find brand new everything and come to find out a can of carb spray and about ten minutes have the vehicle running like new.

I'm not against anybody doing it themselves in fact I'm all for it, but problems caused by computer controlled devices really do require some skill, diagnostic information/flowcharts, a little experience, a little luck, and some special equipment!!

[Huskie]

Good news, cleaned off the gas cap, tightened it down. E mailed autozone in Kato and they said they would read the code free, but it was illegal for them to clear it !!!!! In the meantime after 10- 12 starts the "check engine soon" light went off and has stayed off. Thanks for saving me some $$$$$$$.