Check Engine Light

[Wanderer]

Repiv, The other day, I noted the check engine light illulminated on my 02. A recollection of a past post or two and some quick troubleshooting revealed that my gas cap was indeed loose. After I secured it, the CEL remained illuminated for about 100 miles at which time I realized that it had extinguished.

Now for my question. How long will the fault code be retained in memory? If it is permanent, how does one reset the fault code?

Ok, I just read the post about resetting the computer's memory. Thanks for that info.

Thanks in advance for your help!!

Dick

[gomarlins3]

You could have it scanned at your local autoparts store, but some of them will not reset the code. I wish you were closer because I have a scanner and could check it and if o.k, reset it for you. Maybe someone near you could do that for you.

[repiv]

When a loose gas cap code comes on and you tighten the gas cap, it can several driving cycles before the light goes out. A driving cycle varies depending upon the length of the trip. It can take quite some time before the sensor detects the correct pressure/vacuum in the fuel tank system. Now that the CEL has gone off, the code is also gone. The ECU won't retain this sort of information after the light has cleared. Glad you found the reset info. Just make sure you get the code before you clear it.