[Joeatslo]

The check engine light came on in my insight and I need to get it checked out soon.

Any suggestions on good/reliable San Diego area mechanics or quick and easy at home tricks to figure out whats wrong. The dealer wants $80 to check it out? Is that a fair price if the other two options are not possible.

I don't notice anything wrong with the way the car runs, the gas milage is down but my city/stoplight driving has doubled the last few weeks as well.
I can't tell if anything is wrong with the exhaust. My gut leans toward oxygen sensor but i have no justification for it.

 

[Resist]

The dealer wants $80 to check it out? Is that a fair price if the other two options are not possible.

Understand ALL dealerships overcharge. So no it's not a fair price. Buy a service manual and check it out your self.

 

[Joeatslo]

how would i use the manual to isolate the problem? my understanding of the inner workings is intermediate at best.

 

[Ecfool]

Contrary to popular belief from most here your best option is to find a decent honest mechanic and have him check it out. If you just want codes any mechanic with a OBD-II scanner can pull codes and translate them for you. If you arnt comfortable with automotive electronics it is best to leave it to professional. This is from a master certified tech with 30+ years in the profession.
Most the time I get a CEL lite it is for the O2 sensor I usually clear codes and life is good again. It appears honda has a slight problem with the O2 sensor being rather touchy.

 

[Rick]

First, did you recently get gas? If you don't tighten the gas cap properly it will give you a check engine light. There are a lot of more advanced codes only the proper reader can read, but it's worth a shot to use some automotive parts stores free code reading service.

 

[Joeatslo]

Checked the gas cap when it first turned on - no dice, its been on for about two hundred miles - hardly have had time to deal. it turned on one random afternoon and hasn't faded since.

Im borrowing a odb ii scanner from a friend later this week and will see if i can tell what the CEL is for and if it comes back after I clear it out.

If anyone is curious ill post what happens.

Thanks for the help