Has Your Engine Management Light Switched On?

As a vehicle owner, it’s important to look after your car to avoid any issues that may arise. However, your car is a sophisticated machine and will inform you when something is wrong through the lights on your dashboard.

If your engine management light comes on, what does it mean? We’re here to help.

What is the Engine Management Light?

The engine management lights alerts you to problems with your car. It’s connected to the Engine Control Unit and translates mechanical issues into a single warning light.

What Does the Colour of the Light Mean?

A solid amber engine managementlight means that, while your car has a problem, you can still drive semi-normally, just be sensible with it.

A flashing amber light makes driving slightly more risky. This is a more concrete sign that your engine isn’t running smoothly somewhere safe to pull over and call your recovery provider. Get them to tow you to the nearest garage to be safe.

The red engine management light is the most severe. You must stop driving if you see this as your engine has a critical fault. Pull over safely and get your recovery provider to take you straight to a garage.

What Causes the Light to Come On?

There are many factors that can cause your light to come on, it could be a:

Emissions System Fault – sensors monitor the oxygen content of exhaust fumes and report back to the ECU. If too much or too little oxygen leaves the exhaust, it will trigger the engine management light.

Mass Airflow Sensor Fault – if there is no data about how much air the combustion is burning, it assumes the engine isn’t getting any. This guards against overheating or expensive engine damage.

Blocked Fuel Pump Or Fuel Injectors – you may see the engine management light if your engine isn’t burning enough fuel during combustion.

You might notice misfires and poor engine performance if gunk or other particles are blocking your fuel injector, or the pump isn’t providing the injectors with enough fuel

Ignition System Fault – spark plugs provide the spark that causes combustion between the fuel and air in the engine. If they develop a fault, your car can’t complete the combustion process and you’ll experience problems with the ignition system.

If you would like your engine checking or servicing, at YCC Service Centre we offer a car service that will have your vehicle working to the best of its ability. When you book both a service and MOT at the same time, they can give you a combination discount.

Whether you have an electric or hybrid car, we can provide a service for you. If you would like to enquire about how we can help, get in touch with our friendly and professional staff today by calling 01772 704704, and we will book your service in no time.