Question

What does it mean when my “Service Engine Soon” light comes on? Can I keep driving my car?

Answer

Your SES light is designed to warn you when your vehicle’s on-board computer has detected a faulty reading from one of a number of sensors that are located in and around your engine. Often, this can be just a “glitch” like what happens to our home computers. The best advice we can give would be to first determine if your vehicle is running any differently. If your engine idles rough, lacks power, is hard starting, or if you notice any other symptoms along with your SES light then you should make plans to get your vehicle in for an assessment at your earliest convenience.

However, if your vehicle seems to be running the same with no apparent problems, then you may consider driving your vehicle for another day or two to see if the light goes off on its own. If the light does go off on its own, then you are OK to keep driving the vehicle as normal and wait to see if the light comes on again later. If the SES light is flashing this is a sign that you should not be driving the vehicle. It would be in your best interest to either drive the vehicle directly home or directly to the repair shop for diagnosis. A flashing SES light means that continued use of the vehicle can cause further damage to engine components.