Check Engine Light - Real or Fake

I was talking to a friend the other day and she jogged my memory about something. She told me that the check engine light (CEL) on her 2007 Camry came on so she took it to get checked out and was told the catalytic converter was bad. She went on to share that a few days later the light went out without her doing anything so she figures she will just keep driving it until the light comes back on and/or something else happens. She reminded me that several years prior her mechanic had told her that the transmission on that same car was bad and needed to be replaced, however she never did replace it and the car runs just fine. 

Her story reminded me of my own CEL situation. About three years ago (2015) the CEL on my 2005 Jeep Liberty came on. Diagnostic check revealed that the catalytic converter needed to be replaced so I replaced it. The CEL went away only to return a few days later. More testing lead to me replacing the O2 sensors and the muffler. However the CEL kept coming on intermittently.  I did some online research to see if I could discover another reason why the code would point to a defective catalytic converter. Came across a few explanations including the possibility of a defective gas cap. With no definitive cause, and my jeep was running fine, I decided I would just have to learn to live with it because I was not about to sink any more money into my jeep. However there was still the issue of passing the annual emission testing. The first year my jeep failed to pass the emission testing because I did not drive the car long enough in between repairs to reset the code.  No problem, I just waited a few days then went back and she passed, including gas cap check.

Shortly after that the CEL came back on and stayed.  I put it out of my mind until the end of the year when the emission test was due again. I remember it like it was just yesterday. It was a Wednesday and I had been visualizing me holding my pass emission paper in my hand all week long. When I left home to run errands the CEL was on. Each time I left a location I would check to see if the light was still on and it did not disappoint. By 3pm I was leaving Walmart when I noticed the light was off, so I decided to make one more stop and if it was still off I would go get the emission done. When I got back in the car the CEL was still off so I went to the nearest emission testing site and passed the inspection.  The next day as I was driving to the DMV to renew my tags, the light came back on and stayed on. Of course I was not concerned because I had my passed emission paper securely in my hand.

So here comes the first week of December 2017 and I am faced with the same dilemma as before. What did I do? Glad you asked. I just envisioned myself with the pass emission paper in my hand all week long. Every time I got into the jeep I expected the CEL to be off so I could go get the emission testing done. On the morning of the second Thursday I got in the jeep and the CEL was still on as always. Not to worry because I expected a window of opportunity would present itself sometime during the day for me to go get the emission testing done.  When I got in the car that afternoon the CEL was off so I drove 34 miles to the emission place where it passed, including gas cap. Not even five minutes after I drove out the CEL came back on and has been on. Again I was not worried because I had my pass paper in my hand. I was beginning to think that there was really no correlation between passing the emission test and the CEL being on, when I noticed on the emission test results “code present” was listed. However it was blank. I am sure now that if the CEL was on or if my gas cap was an issue, it would have generated a code which would have changed my results. 

I’m not sure if this “check engine” thing is a litigate thing or if it is just something manufactures have put in place to help the mechanic industry. Either way, I find it a bit suspect that even though I replaced everything I was told to replace, the CEL stays on. Thank Yah I have developed the skills to practice positive thinking which allows me to bypass this issue every year when it’s time to renew my tags.  I’m Just Saying. I got issues – what about you?

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