Check Engine Light Diagnosis

How the Check Engine Light Works

Your Ford model has a powerful engine control unit or ECU. This ECU is a computer fed information by numerous sensors around your vehicle; these sensors track the performance and emissions to make sure everything in the engine is working as it should and make any needed adjustments to the engine’s operation. If one of these sensors is damaged or sends an incorrect reading, the ECU will turn on the check engine light to let you know there's a problem.

Finding the Cause of an Illuminated Check Engine Light

If your Ford's check engine light turns on, we invite you to come to Destination Ford near Hungerford, Texas. Our technicians will hook your Ford up to a code reader and see what the ECU is pointing to, but we won't stop there! We will then perform an inspection of the indicated trouble area to know exactly what is causing the issue. Once we have figured out the problem, we will let you know how we recommend proceeding.

Common Causes of an Illuminated Check Engine Light

Since so many sensors give their information to the ECU, a check engine light could have various meanings. The list below contains some of the more common ones, but these are far from the only potential causes:

• Loose, Damaged or Missing Fuel Cap
• Failed O2 Sensor
• Thermostat Failure
• Worn Spark Plugs
• Faulty Mass Airflow Sensor
• EGR Valve Failure