Several months ago my Honda Civic’s “check engine” light started coming on intermittently. It’d stay on for a few weeks, then it’d turn off for a few days, then it’d turn back on, etc.
Two weeks ago I took it to a Honda dealership for them to fix it. They checked it and told me “it just wants a software update.” (How did it know an update was available?)
So they did it, and lo and behold, the light was off.
The following Monday, the light was back on. It stayed on all last week, until Sunday, when apparently it wasn’t on. It wasn’t on yesterday either, but I took it in to the dealership anyway.
They looked at it and couldn’t see anything wrong, but they did say some other cars are having the same issue. He told me “maybe it’s the cold.”
Well that’s just great. I have a “check engine” light that’s gimped by cold weather. How am I supposed to know whether my engine is actually breaking, if it’s cold outside?
That sucks. What year is it? I have an 08 and have not had the engine light come on due to cold weather.
Also, why did you wait several weeks before having it looked at?
It’s a 2009 Honda Civic Hybrid. The reason I waited before having it looked at is that the “check engine” light would turn off for a few days every once in a while; the car’s manual says the following (I’m paraphrasing):
So on the one hand, the manual is telling me it’s dangerous to drive the car with the light on. On the other hand, the manual is telling me that the light might turn off on its own after a few days. So which is it?
So that’s one reason I stalled. Another is that to take my car to a mechanic, I either have to a) skip work, or b) go in on a Saturday. Saturdays generally aren’t very good days for me.