I'm a relatively new Subaru Outback owner (2002) and the Engine Check light has just appeared on the panel. The manual says if it's a steady (not blinking) light that stays on, the emission controls system has malfunctioned in some way. The guy who just changed my oil says he just needs to reset(?) it for the light to go away. And, I've already tightened the gas fuel cap in an attempt to get rid of the light. This car has less than 30K original miles on it. Can anyone out there expound on what could be the problem? Thanks for any help..........Georgiegirl.

It could be a list of a hundred things, you need to have the code(s) pulled instead of guesswork. The guy that did your oil change if he is a real mechanic he should have a OBDII code reader. You can reset it but if the problem is not dealt with the check engine light will just reappear.

What's the trouble code? It should tell you exactly why it's on.

 

Ah, Roamer beat me to it.

Welcome to the forum Georgiegirl. You have come to the right spot for your Soobie questions. Hopefully you will have lots of good driving with this car.

 

It is hard to say what is causing the light to turn on but some common error codes are with the knock sensor and O2 sensor. There may just be a bad connection to one of the sensors but you don't need to guess. You can have the codes read for free at places like Autozone in the hopes they can sell you a part, though you are not required to purchase anything. Let us know what you find out.

go to autozone or checker, they'll pull it for free, most likely it's the front 02 sensor, which had a recall on it. the problem with the new ones (assuming the recall was done) is that the replacement o2 sensor was of the same crappy vintage and the recalled one. They've sinse rectified that with a New new one, this one should last almost forever. i think the code is 0133 or I033 or something like that, if so, it's the front o2 sensor, the dealer will put one in for you. it's covered, so visit the auto part store first, it helps to go to the dealer "educated" you will not harm the car driving it in this state. Resetting it will not fix the issue, it will simply come back. The error description will probably say "weak o2 sensor signal" or something to that effect.

 

 

don't sweat it, just don't wait 6mos. to fix it.

 

hope this helps

oh and a let us know the diagnosis