2018 BMW X3 Check Engine Light
A flashing light hints that the problem is serious and if not taken care of abruptly may result in cooperative damage to the vehicle. If the check engine light in your 2018 BMW X3 starts flashing, that means that the problem needs abrupt attention and your BMW should be brought in abruptly. This blinking light usually indicates a relentless engine misfire allowing unburned fuel to be dumped into the exhaust system. There it can immediately improve the temperature of the catalytic converter to a point where wear and tear is achievable, requiring an expensive repair. Some owners ask if spark plugs cause the check engine light to flash? This can absolutely be the cause. A bad, historic or dirty spark plug can cause the engine to misfire. If your check engine light is twinkling, please contact our team of automotive experts at Nalley BMW of Decatur suddenly by calling 7706285694. If the problem is ignored or you continue to drive, this can spread to the spark plug wires, catalytic converter, or ignition coils which can lead to a particularly expensive repair.
Is it safe to drive your 2018 BMW X3 with the check engine light on?
This question is not very effortless because it all depends on the severity of the issue. If the cause is a minor issue, such as a loose gas cap, it should be dependable to drive. This is typically indicated by a steady glow of the check engine light. If you notice a difference in the performance of the automobile, it could be an indication of a more serious problem. If the check engine light is blinking, this means that there is a serious issue and it is recommended to service your BMW X3 abruptly. Call the advisors at Nalley BMW of Decatur by dialing 7706285694 so you can describe the issues. Or reduce your speed and deliver your 2018 BMW to our certified mechanics as soon as achievable.
What Does the Check Engine Light Mean?
One of the most normally misunderstood lights or indicators in your 2018 BMW X3 is the check engine light. The check engine light is part of the onboard diagnostics system, and displays in assorted different ways. It can say "Check Engine", it can be a symbol of an engine, it can even be a combination of both. This light brightens in either an amber or red color and is part of the diagnostics system found on your vehicle. Onboard computers increasingly have controlled and monitored vehicle performance since the 80s and do a collection of things for your 2018 BMW X3. Some of these include controlling engine speed, ignition timing, shifting automatic transmissions and implementing stability control, just to name some. With that being said, the check engine light can mean a variety of alternative things. It can be as commonplace as your gas cap being loose or as forceful as engine knocking. If your check engine light is on in your 2018 BMW X3, contact Nalley BMW of Decatur. Contact Nalley BMW of Decatur today! Our BMW service department can help you find out what code is turning your check engine light on or probe why your check engine light is flashing.
How much does it cost to get the engine light checked?
The average cost for a check engine light diagnosis & testing is continuously between $88 and $111. The exceptional news, Nalley BMW of Decatur offers complimentary multi-point inspections and free diagnostics, in most cases, to help choose the cause of your check engine light. The check engine light warns of issues ranging from a gas cap that's not well tightened to a more good failure like a bad catalytic converter or a problem with one of the car's oxygen sensors, so it exceptional to get the lawful code reading and diagnosis.
2018 BMW X3 Check Engine Light Codes
The check engine light turning on can be quite intimidating to see that little light on your vehicle’s dashboard suddenly illuminates, but in reality, it is not something that should cause you to shut down in fear noble away. If you hear the term, diagnostic trouble codes (DTC), these are just another name for check engine light codes. These are automotive computer codes stored by the ECM, also natural as the OBD (on-board computer diagnostic system) in your X3. There are hundreds of easy codes that your check engine light can represent. While that sounds daunting, with a bit patience, tackling considerable diagnostics will give you available knowledge about your vehicle and will also allow that Check Engine Light to do what it is really supposed to do: be your guide. Unfortunately, clear and cooperative vehicle symptoms do not always accompany an illuminated Check Engine Light. Since there are hundreds of attainable OBD codes, there are also hundreds of attainable reasons for the light, including:
- Fuel and air metering systems problems
- Old Battery
- O2 Sensor
- Transmission issues
- Computer output circuit issues
- Loose Gas Cap or Missing Gas Cap
- Bad Spark Plugs
- Emissions controls issues
- Ignition system faults
This is why it is mandatory for someone who does not have a few of automotive knowledge to not assume what a code means. If the engine light comes on due to a hazardous concern, you risk damaging your car added by not repairing the issue polite away. Call Nalley BMW of Decatur at 7706285694 today or schedule your check engine light service online today! When your check engine light comes on, you should get it checked out swiftly by a certified BMW mechanic.
What could cause the check engine light to come on in a 2018 BMW X3?
When your check engine light comes on, this could be as authentic as tightening or replacing your gas cap. Likewise, the check engine light could also be a warning of a astonishing problem that could cause astonishing damage to your engine and come with a outstanding repair bill. Depending on your make and model, the check engine light will illuminate or blink. A steady glow continuously means something less astonishing but a flashing check engine light illustrates that your vehicle’s engine is in astonishing trouble and service is necessary suddenly. If your check engine light is flashing in your 2018 BMW X3, we extraordinarily recommend not to drive the vehicle and schedule BMW service today. Below is a list of the most acceptable reasons your check engine light can come on:
- Your O2 Sensor (Oxygen Sensor) needs to be replaced. The Oxygen sensor, known as the O2 sensor, measures the amount of oxygen in your exhaust system. If there is excess oxygen in your exhaust system, fuel burns faster and your vehicle will be less reasonable when it comes to fuel economy. So what happens if I don’t replace your O2 sensor? A faulty sensor can not only affect your miles per gallon, but it can cause wear and tear to your catalytic converter and your 2018 BMW X3's spark plugs. The O2 sensor sends data to the vehicle’s onboard computer to designate the decent mixture of air and fuel that enters the cylinders in your engine. A bad O2 sensor can also cause a car to fail an emissions test.
- One of the most common and innumerable cause is that your 2018 BMW X3 gas cap is loose, damaged or missing. The gas cap for your 2018 BMW X3 serves multiple purposes. It prevents gas fumes from being released when you aren't driving, it seals the fuel system and helps maintain pressure within the fuel tank. What happens if you have a bad fuel cap? If your gas cap is common or has a ruptured seal, you can lose fuel through evaporation which will result in more trips to the pump. Luckily, to replace a gas cap isn't expensive. If your check engine light turns on straightaway after you put gas in your 2018 BMW X3, first thing you should check is to make courageous the cap isn’t loose — or that it's still on your car’s roof or at the fuel pump.
- The battery is low or dead. The battery in your 2018 BMW X3 is any vital. Without a car battery, your car won’t start, light up the road ahead, play the radio or charge your phone. Today’s car batteries last much longer than they did a little decades ago, and they don't really require maintenance. The price of a new one depends on the type of BMW you drive, but check our ongoing service coupons and specials.
- New Spark Plugs or Plug Wires are basic for your 2018 BMW X3. The spark plugs are the part of your engine that ignites the air/fuel mixture in the combustion chamber of your vehicle. This explosion is what moves the pistons and makes the engine run. The spark plug wires deliver the spark from the ignition coil to the spark plugs. If your spark plugs or spark plug wires are bad or common, you will experience small performance and reduced power. In some extreme cases, your engine will have trouble starting or continuing to run. Worn spark plugs and plug wires can cause clogged catalytic converter or wear and tear to ignition coils and O2 sensors, best to more expensive repairs.
- Issues with any aftermarket items. An aftermarket alarm, exhaust or added item can wreak havoc on your 2018 BMW X3 if it’s not installed properly. These aftermarket parts and accessories can drain the battery, trigger the check engine light, or even prevent the vehicle from starting. If these issues sound common, transport your X3 to BMW and have our team of certified mechanics ensure that your aftermarket items were installed correctly and aren't causing any issue. Getting accessories, especially aftermarket parts and accessories, or using OEM parts first place might cost a scant bit more but could save you money from having to get small work and wear and tear caused by small installation work corrected.
- Your 2018 BMW X3 has a vacuum leak. Any BMW X3 has a vacuum system that performs a wide variety of functions. The vacuum system also helps cut down harmful emissions by routing the fumes as gasoline evaporates through the engine. If you notice that your RPM is high in idle or randomly surges, a vacuum leak could be the cause. Over time, vacuum hoses can parched out and crack, especially if they’re exposed to exciting heat or extreme pleasant.
- Your mass airflow sensor (known as MAF) needs to be replaced. The mass airflow sensor in your BMW X3 is what determines how much fuel is basic to run your engine efficiently by measuring the amount of air entering the engine. As a part of the engine management system, the mass airflow sensor helps adjust to imperative changes, like altitude. If your BMW X3 is having trouble starting, idling rough or has a quick change in the position of the throttle pedal, this could be a sign of a bad mass airflow sensor.
- Your catalytic converter is bad or going bad. The catalytic converter is a part of your 2018 BMW X3’s exhaust system. The catalytic converter's function is to turn the carbon monoxide created by the combustion process into carbon dioxide. A damaged catalytic converter is commonly caused by neglected maintenance, which is why Nalley BMW of Decatur offers a complimentary multi-point inspection with any BMW service. If you have an issue with your catalytic converter and don't get it repaired, your 2018 BMW X3 will not pass an emissions test, show a lack of engine performance and will negatively affect your fuel economy. Your car may run at a higher temperature, too, which can cause added problems from overheating.
Will the check engine light reset itself?
The check engine light on your 2018 BMW X3 will commonly shut itself off if the issue or code that caused it to turn on is fixed. For example, if the cause of your check engine light coming on was a loose gas cap, if it's tightened, the light will turn itself off. Likewise, if your catalytic converter is going functional, and you did a lot of stop-and-go driving, that may have turned on the check engine light due to the high usage of the converter. In most cases, your 2018 BMW X3 light will go off after about 20-40 miles. If you drive over that payment and the light is still on, you will need to bring it in to Nalley BMW of Decatur so the light and code can be double-checked and reset.
2018 BMW X3 Check Engine Light Flashing
Although there are bountiful attainable causes of an illuminated Check Engine Light, we know from years of providing Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that there are plentiful established causes including something as straightforward as a loose gas cap. Back-up established reasons for a Check Engine Light are a malfunction with the fuel injection system, faulty emissions control part, faulty head gasket, dirty mass airflow sensor, damaged oxygen sensor, or defective spark plugs to name innumerable. No matter what is the root cause of the Check Engine Light, we have the BMW Certified Technicians and the certified service protocol to isolate the root problem and repair it as decisive to restore factory specifications. When this happens, the Check Engine Light turns off, and you can leave the service center knowing that your BMW issue was fixed.
Every 2018 BMW X3 was designed with a high-technology performance monitoring system with a computer, and a series of sensors positioned strategically throughout the vehicle on its troublesome systems. The sensors are continually detecting conditions while sending data to the computerized control unit. If the computerized control unit detects that the data is out of factory specifications, the Check Engine Light illuminates telling you that there is a problem. However, that is the limitation of the Check Engine Light – it won’t tell you what definitely is awry nor what to do about it. That’s where we come in; Nalley BMW of Decatur provides a Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that isolates the core problem and gives you a recommendation on what to do next from a Extremely Qualified Service trained.
Check Engine Light Service 2018 BMW X3
What do you do when you’re driving along in your BMW X3 and suddenly, a yellow light illuminates on your dash and says "Check Engine". If you’re like most BMW owners, your heart sinks a miniature because you have miniature idea about what that light is trying to tell you or how you should react. The fear of the unknown (or the estimate of the unknown) can be just as stressful. But take a deep breath and realize the light coming on doesn’t mean you have to pull the automobile over to the side of the road and call a tow truck, but it is recommended that you get your 2018 BMW X3 checked as soon as valuable. Ignoring that warning could end up causing major damage to expensive engine components.
When your 2018 BMW X3's ECM (electronic control module), which is the vehicle's onboard computer, finds a problem in the electronic control system that it can’t appropriate, a computer turns on your check engine light. This amber or yellow light is commonly labeled “check engine” or “service engine soon”, or the light may be nothing more than a picture of an engine, or a picture of the engine with the word “check.”
When the light turns on, the ECM stores an engine code or “trouble code” in its memory that identifies as the issue, whether it's a sensor or a failing engine part. This code is read with an electronic analyze tool that is used by our BMW auto repair mechanics at Nalley BMW of Decatur. There are also a number of relatively honest code readers that are designed for do-it-yourselfers, should you determine that route too. While this code will tell you the issue that is detected, a true diagnosis still requires an professional experienced to mean the issue and repair it.
How many miles can you drive with the check engine light?
Since all check engine code has its own level of severity, it is difficult to predict how many miles you can drive with the warning light on. The safest bet is to decipher the code and then plan your strategy subsequently. If you check engine light is flashing, we endorse that you pull over and contact Nalley BMW of Decatur to help choose if your vehicle is safe to drive in or if we endorse a tow truck. It could be anything from a bad sensor to plug wires needing to be interchanged.