With the winter weather taking a turn for the worse and lots of us preparing to make long journeys to see family and friends over the festive period, it’s a good idea to make sure your car is in tip top condition.
Many of us will crank up the mileage on our vehicles heading home for Christmas or driving here and there to visit our nearest and dearest. And if you are preparing yourself for a long journey, the last thing you want to see is a light appear on your dashboard.
Fearing your car may not be ready for the road could cause havoc with your festive plans, so you want to make sure you deal with the issue as soon as possible. And one motoring expert has thankfully stepped in to tell us all how to get rid of one of the most common warning lights, The Express US reports.
TikTok user @chequanlaosi regularly posts valuable motoring videos, teaching drivers about vehicle maintenance and tips for staying safe on the road. In one particularly useful clip, he shared what you should do if you see a warning light appear for your engine.
He said: “If the light on the instrument panel comes on suddenly while driving, stop and inspect now. This yellow helicopter-like fault light is an engine fault light. If this light is on but there is nothing abnormal when driving it’s likely that the gasoline you put in is of poor quality.”
The engine management light (EML), also known as the check engine light, looks like the outline of a car engine, and generally tells you that you need to get your car checked – but it is still safe to drive if it is yellow.
However, if it is flashing amber or appears in red, the problem is more serious, meaning you must stop in the nearest safe place and call a breakdown provider. If it is solid amber or yellow, and not flashing, then you can briefly fix the fauly by disconnecting the battery for a short period.
TikToker @chequanlaosi added: “You just need to find the battery in the engine compartment. The plus sign is the positive pole, the minus sign is the negative pole. Get a wrench and remove the negative side, wait for ten seconds and then install it back, being sure to tighten the screws. Finally, start the car. The engine fault light will go out.”
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