Steve 96C4S

I can't believe this. I JUST reset the CEL with my $127 Equus 3100 OBDII Code3 Reader 2 days ago and the very next day the light comes on again after a short drive. I was simply backing up the car to pull it into the garage and the blasted light comes back on. It's always the same dumb codes 0410 and 0411 (secondary air injection). Anyone have the same problem? Is my car cursed? Am I just basically screwed in that I have to reset it every single day? What a pain in the neck, ya know? I've never heard of anyone else's light coming on so regularly after resetting it.

Thanks in advance, though I don't hold much hope of solving this problem short of spending megabucks ($5k) at my independent. I know that if I throw enough money in his direction, he'll erradicate the problem... but that would also erradicate the car from garage as my wife and I made a deal that if the car costs more than $3k per year, it goes bye bye!

I wish I could just disengage this CEL so it would never come back on, except when I go to vehicle emissions inspection. The car runs great except for the first minute or two when it hesitates a bit each morning (most likely due to the secondary air injection issue). This is the carbon buildup problem... right? No big deal. It's still fast as hel* and fun beyond words to drive just the way it is now.

Steve

DC from Cape Cod

Have the shop fix the car and don't tell the wife.

Simple.

Steve 96C4S

Thanks DC from Cape Cod... but she controls the checkbook AND pays our Visa bills! It would be hard/impossible to siphon off that much moolah without her knowing. Heck, if could sponge $5k out of the account, I'd get the aluminum interior upgrades, C4S door sills for some ridiculous price on Ebay, the 993 sport seats AND that luscious AJ- USA steering wheel like John H from DC has!

Any other ideas?

Steve

DC from Cape Cod

Hey - my smiley icon thing didn't show up on that post........

Get the checkbook back and then see my first post. Women like men that take control and they really like "bad boys". Do both.

Or...remove the light bulb/tape over it and don't worry about it until you go for inspection again in 2 years. At that point, you have $6K in the "wife's allowable car expense budget) to get it fixed.

I'm not sure you have other options.....the fix is expensive but the problem is only a problem for inspection (and if you have to stare at the CEL while you drive).

JasonF

DC speaks great words of wisdom. I recently took back the purse strings, and you'd be surprised at what can get buried in the monthly expenses. Shave a few hundred off the top each month and you'll cover your repair expense in a little over a year.

My wife was very diligent with the bill-paying (heck she used to work at a bank!) but once I took over, she wanted nothing to do with the stuff. Now her eyes glaze over when I try to discuss a particular expense.

Or, if you can't wait and are particularly nefarious, take over the bill paying responsibility, open another Visa account, fix the car and then pay the balance a little each month.

Greg Fishman

You are going to have to fix it or pay for it to be fixed, whether you sell the car or not. Might as well do it now.

Steve 96C4S

Oh - you devious bastar*s! I love it. I could easily take control of the checkbook again and bill paying, as I gave it all to her a year ago because I was swamped at work. She doesn't like to do it anyway. It was simply to establish a semi-equal distribution of the workload around the house. I guess I screwed up in that regard! Now there's no skating by with any skimming off the household funds. Nothing gets by her!

BUT, I was hoping to find a cure to this cancer of the CEL coming on every day WITHOUT spending enough money to send us to Italy for 2 weeks next summer... Isn't there another way? I'm NOT spending $5k on this, ya know? It doesn't even effect performance. What's the point?

Steve

Joe@Fabspeed

just take the stinking CHECK ENGINE LIGHT BULB out of the guage. It is an idiot light and annoying.......but nothing is going to hurt your car. The GERMANS remove the light all the time on stupid check engine issues that are meaningless.
joe

Steve 96C4S

Now that's the kind of answer I was looking for! Cheap and efficient. Thank you 993 Clubsport. I'm guessing it's not TOTALLY safe to remove this light, lest a serious engine issue occur at some point down the road sometime. BUT, what's the reasonable likelihood that THAT will every truly happen?

I'm ready to be operated on. I want to go through with the procedure while I'm still mentally alert. I'll be the guinea pig on Rennlist (if I'm the only one to go through with this rare form of "cancer" removal). If I get a few more yes votes, I'm game for having the CEL disconnected and erradicated from my "system".

Steve

TrackJunke

If you remove it, I would make a habit of checking for codes once every two weeks or something like that. That way if something does go wrong you will be able to nip it in the bud.

JasonF

Steve-

Also, if you don't elect to "fix" the problem (and part with $5k in the process), does Maryland have independent inspection stations? If so, I would start to build a rapport with one now (go there for gas, etc...). Come inspection time, you could reset the light (assuming it's on the day of inspection) practically in front of the guys and they wouldn't care so long as their diagnostic equipment didn't detect a fault. From your post, it looks like the light will come on mid-drive, so there is a danger that you could reset the light the morning of inspection and have it come on while driving to inspection. Good luck, I can't imagine how annoying it must be when that light goes on.

Steve 96C4S

Excellent advice, to check the codes every 2 weeks - Track Junkie. By the way, are you in a 12 step fellowship for your addiction? I hope you're getting help

Peace,
Steve

TrackJunke

I do need help. I am keeping my fingers crossed that CEL issue will not arise with my car.

jda407

I've gotten so used to driving with the CEL on that when I reset it and drive the car...I feel like something is missing. Mine too comes on regularly...not exactly everyday...but definitely more frequently than I would like. However, I'm not concerned or mad enough to spend the $'s to eliminate the problem. I'll just keep resettin'.

chris walrod

Steve, if you lived closer to me, I would love to help you out. All it would cost you (for the most part) is a top end gasket and seal set and we could get those SAI passages cleaned out...