service engine soon?

Blueolds · 12-01-2010, 06:43 PM

Hey been awhile, but my service engine light came on and i had the codes pulled said coolant temp sensor, so i replaced the old one and my guage still doesnt work. The fans come on and the light is still on i was wondering if theres a fuse for it or what. i need to get the car inspected so this is terrible timing.

spc2125 · 12-01-2010, 07:01 PM

if you already serviced your car and you know your engine and everything is all set, on the driver side there is a panel where you can reset the lights on your spedometer. im pretty sure the manual has the directions on what to do
but they go a little like this

1. put key in and turn two clicks
2. hold down reset button for X amount of time
3. turn key back two clicks
4. release reset button
5. turn car on
Repeat steps 1-5

thats prob not right but its quick and easy to fix

Blueolds · 12-01-2010, 07:06 PM

i'll give it a shot

TdotAlero · 12-01-2010, 08:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by spc2125

if you already serviced your car and you know your engine and everything is all set, on the driver side there is a panel where you can reset the lights on your spedometer. im pretty sure the manual has the directions on what to do
but they go a little like this

1. put key in and turn two clicks
2. hold down reset button for X amount of time
3. turn key back two clicks
4. release reset button
5. turn car on
Repeat steps 1-5

thats prob not right but its quick and easy to fix

As far as I know that only works for "Change Oil" and "low tire pressure" lights.
For "Check Engine" light the only way to clear the code is connecting the reader. Any cheap reader can clear a code.

spc2125 · 12-01-2010, 08:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TdotAlero

As far as I know that only works for "Change Oil" and "low tire pressure" lights.
For "Check Engine" light the only way to clear the code is connecting the reader. Any cheap reader can clear a code.

your probably right because i have only used it for the low tire pressure and change oil yesterday

Lucalare · 12-01-2010, 10:19 PM

I didn't know the Alero had a tire pressure monitor. It's not very good cause I had a leaky tire and got down to about 15 psi and there was no light.

clutch1 · 12-01-2010, 10:55 PM

The wiring and stuff could be faulty.

Pull up live data on a scanner and see if the coolant temp is working there, too. That will help narrow stuff down.

TdotAlero · 12-01-2010, 10:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lucalare

I didn't know the Alero had a tire pressure monitor. It's not very good cause I had a leaky tire and got down to about 15 psi and there was no light.

It's a very simple system, meaning there is no tire sensors in the rims to get the accurate data. I used to have flat tires and still warning light won't come on. But when I have my winter tires (smaller size), low pressure comes on ones in a while (for no reason).

TdotAlero · 12-01-2010, 11:07 PM

edit: delete double post

Blueolds · 12-01-2010, 11:22 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by clutch1

The wiring and stuff could be faulty.

Pull up live data on a scanner and see if the coolant temp is working there, too. That will help narrow stuff down.

that would be terrible i dont get paid till the 23rd

zzyzzx · 12-02-2010, 10:26 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by clutch1

The wiring and stuff could be faulty.

Pull up live data on a scanner and see if the coolant temp is working there, too. That will help narrow stuff down.

The OP was behaving like an auto mechanic. Just replace the part, assume everything else is working perfectly, and consider ti fixed.

Personally, I won't replace a sensor unless I can prove it's bad (except for maybe O2 sensors that have more than 100K miles on them).

Blueolds · 12-02-2010, 11:10 PM

Problem solved the sensor started working while i was driving to work, just got get the codes cleared.

Lucalare · 12-02-2010, 11:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TdotAlero

It's a very simple system, meaning there is no tire sensors in the rims to get the accurate data. I used to have flat tires and still warning light won't come on. But when I have my winter tires (smaller size), low pressure comes on ones in a while (for no reason).

If there's no sensor in the rim, how does it monitor the pressure?

TdotAlero · 12-02-2010, 11:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lucalare

If there's no sensor in the rim, how does it monitor the pressure?

It doesn't. The TPMS system that you see in modern cars, sends signal from a sensor in the rim to a on board computer, letting you check the tire pressure to 0.001psi accuracy. The system that the Alero has is a low tire pressure warning system. It gets that from the speed sensor, and compares to the other tires, and sends warning in a form of a warning light. It's a pretty inaccurate feature, yet sometimes helpful.

Lucalare · 12-02-2010, 11:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TdotAlero

It doesn't. The TPMS system that you see in modern cars, sends signal from a sensor in the rim to a on board computer, letting you check the tire pressure to 0.001psi accuracy. The system that the Alero has is a low tire pressure warning system. It gets that from the speed sensor, and compares to the other tires, and sends warning in a form of a warning light. It's a pretty inaccurate feature, yet sometimes helpful.

Sounds kinda screwy...I think I'll just watch my tires.