What does that light mean?
Dashboard Warning Lights
Happy Halloween! As I enjoy the lights from the imaginatively carved pumpkins in my neighbours front gardens I remember not all coloured lights are welcome at this time of year!
We’ve all been there, you start your car to go home and you notice a new light on the dashboard. Whilst some might be obvious others could mean anything. Depending on the sort of person you are you might Google it, reach for a manual or ignore it (I do know people that have taken the bulb out or fixed some card over it so they can’t see it any more).
I don’t blame anyone that can’t identify all the waning lights on a modern car, there could be more than 50 of them! Ignoring something won’t ever make it go away though, so it’s a good idea to find out what it’s about.
Check Engine!
There are some things you should be able to identify, one is the engine warning light. This might be the outline of an engine in yellow/orange or just say ‘check engine’. If this light is showing you should get your car checked by a mechanic as soon as possible, even if it seams to be driving normally. If you ignore it you could be doing more damage, and end up with a bigger bill.
Oil light.
This one is easy to identify, it looks like an oil can (usually in red). If this shows you should check the oil dipstick, and if it is low top up with the correct engine oil. Driving without enough oil will damage your engine. If it’s not low but this light is on it could indicate a bigger problem, and it’s worth getting it checked out before you break down in the middle of nowhere!
Temperature warning light
This one looks like a thermometer in most cars (again usually in red). If your engine overheats it will break down, so it’s better to pull over somewhere safe. Once the engine has cooled down (you do need to wait a while) check the coolant. You may have just run low, and filling it up could solve the problem. If the light keeps coming on you may have a leak, get it checked by a mechanic.
Brakes
This light is usually a red circle with an exclamation in the middle. Obviously if a brake warning light comes on you need to pull over as soon as you can. The car may not be safe to drive.
Airbag warning light
This light looks a bit like a driver with a circle in front to represent the airbag. If your airbags are faulty you need to get them checked out. Don’t think it’ll be fine, I’m a safe driver I don’t need them anyway! Even the safest drivers can have an accident, and you need your airbags to deploy to stop you and your passengers from being seriously injured. Faulty airbags can also cause accidents, as one could deploy when you are just driving safely. This is why there is a warning light for the airbag system. If you see this light it’s time to take your car to a mechanic to get it checked out.
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