I have a 2000 KIA Sportage. The vehicle only has 51,000 original miles on it. Last week I had to put new brakes on the back. (That was fun ) Now the check engine light is on. How do I find out why???
This thing has a 10 yr. 100,000 mile warranty on the drive train. Is this part of the drive train??? I'm getting sick of working on this hunk of junk.

 

Bring it to a autostore, get the codes read for free, then report back here with the code.

If it happened immediatly after replacing the rear brakes, then you might have damaged a ABS sensor.

 

Where is the ABS sensor located?? No, it didn't come on right away. This is a week later, I did have to bleed the brake line again this morning, the pedal was a little softer than I wanted it.
When you say "autostore", do you mean like "Auto Zone" or "Advanced Auto Parts"?

 

Hi!

Yes, take it by a Autozone, Advanced, Oreillys, etc. They will hook up there handheld scanner tool to it, and a code will be retreived. Once you have that code, come back here with it. Sometimes they can tell you what the problem is, but report back here before they want you to buy parts.

 

OK Thanks. It may not be until later this week though, I have to take my Chevy HHR in for some warranty recall work first. I want to make sure I have a back up car to drive, can't have them both down at the same time

 

an ABS code won't turn on the check engine light...your problem may or may not be covered by the emissions warrenty...no it's not part of the drive train...that's engine and transmission.

 

I must have been sleeping when I wrote that.

 

Some information on O2 sensors:
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/question257.htm

1. buy a new fuel tank cap
2. find a parts store that has several things: - will scan your error codes/reset them; - has seafoam in stock; - is close to a chevron/texaco/exxon gas station.
3. go to that store, buy can of seafoam and have suitable funnel handy to pour it into the fuel tank, you can't do this out of can. buy new fuel cap, i prefer ones with pressure relieve button. 6 bucks, made in usa.
4. have store person reset your error codes. you will have some, as CE light comes up when something's coding in emissions. replace fuel cap, go to gas station, pour seafoam in, refill with midgrade gas to flush seafoam into the tank.
5. go on any freeway and get her running for about 30 minutes at freeway speed.
i'd expect light to come back up after reset, then disappear in about 10-15 minutes, but it all needs to be done as a package.
from now on, make sure that you do cranck that fuel cap 3 clicks, do not top fuel tank, and do not drive without fuel cap. stop using cheap gas, like arco, am/pm, whatever else is the cheapest in your area. you always get what you paid for. most of the lower cost stations sell gasohol, not pure gas.
changing rear brake pads at 50+ K miles does not qualify car as pos. when we looked into buying a RX300 for my wife, 99/2000 just came out of lease, so there was plenty of them around with about 40K miles on them. all we have seen had bad oxygen sensor bank 1 code. that's lexus, mind you. i fixed hers exactly the above described way.

 

But since none of us know what the codes is yet, don't go buying/replacing any parts until you get the codes and either post back here for discussion or get advice locally from a knowledgeable source (not generally the parts store guy).

 

I hope to get it over to Auto Zone tomorrow. I'll post codes as soon as I have them. Is there a chance of damaging the emission system by driving it the 25 miles round trip???

I always keep my gas tank topped off, with the ever increasing cost of gas buying 10 gal or more could require a second mortgage I buy the gas rated for the car be that high test or regular. I was told that buying high test for a car that doesn't need it was a waste of money and might foul the fuel injectors. I don't know if that is true or not, but if the book says 87 Octane then that's what I get. I also make sure that the cap clicks a few times, I do know that not doing so will cause the check engine light to come on. Happened to a friend of mine.

 

Waste of cash...yes. If your engine was not designed to run on "Premium " fuel, you will get no benefit from using it. As far as damaging anything????????Complete MYTH......

Mistake #1........Your cars do not share intimate candle light dinners together, nor do they swap notes from the corners of the driveway, So your car may not have the same problem as your Friend.......Assumptions like this are as costly as they come if they are wrong.

The check engine light in anything after 1996 will "FLASH" repeatedly if there is a chance of catastrophic failure. I would consider it safe to drive provided it isnt flashing, and you are aware there is a problem.

 

Thanks for your patience. I got to Auto Zone today. The guy scanned it and the code that came up was PO26.

 

I think you are missing a digit in your code.

 

Maybe he misread it. That's the code he gave me. He said it was a "knock sensor"?

 

Knock sensor would be 325 or 326.

 

I'd go back and have it checked over, but the darn thing went off on the way home. I assume that's a good thing???

 

Did you happen to fuel back up? Sometimes bad gas can throw a knock sensor code. I doubt it's gone for good...but cross your fingers.

 

BTW In NY it is supposedly Illegal for us (AutoZone employees) to erase any computer code on a customers vehicle. Supposedly because of the computer scan done at time of inspection they can read that codes have been cleared in the recent past.

Just a heads up for those in NY thinking we can just erase your troubles with a flick of a switch.

 

It is illegal in many states to bypass an OBD2 Drive cycle .The emissions analyzer knows that the codes have been recently cleared and makes the vehicle.."Untestable" until the required drive cycle is completed. While it is inconvienient to the customer, and it does stop the Guys looking for a way around the system, It isnt Illegal, just company policy.

 

HotinOKC: It could have been a case of stale gas, never thought of that causing a problem. That vehicle did sit in the driveway undriven most of the winter.

dcjredline: The Auto Zone employee did tell me that they could not reset it even if I repaired it. Advanced Auto told me it was against the law for them to do it.

Unclediezel: Why is it illegal in any state? ( Sorry, I'm a little automotive challenged) What is the difference if the dealership resets it or the guy at an auto parts store???
What is a "required drive cycle"

 

Almost all OBD2 "Trouble codes are "2 Stage" codes. What this means, is when the PCM detects a fault, It is stored in a memory, and given a "Pending" status. The next Time you Drive the car, if the fault is not noticed by the PCM, the pending code is released from memory , and all is normal. If the trouble is noticed on the second trip, The status is changed from Pending to current, and the MIL, or Check Engine light is illuminated.

The PCM is also equipped with an "INTERNAL TRIP COUNTER", which records how many times you have driven the car without a Failure present, Or how many times with the failure present. Each of these is trips is a "Drive Cycle".

In states with OBD2 emission testing, the car is required to be free from failure for a minimum of 2 drive cycles, before the equipment will test the vehicle. The legality comes into play when an INSPECTOR attempts to fraudulently clear a code and reset a trip counter, for the purpose of issuing a fraudulent inspection certificate,but Certainly not from a motorist or repair facility attempting to repair a vehicle.

It makes no difference at all who clears the code, Provided the emission system has not been "Cheated" or Tampered with in order to do so.

 

Not due for that inspection until July, should have plenty of drive cycles on her by then
Just out of curiosity, is there a distance "driven" requirement, or is it how many times the key is turned on without detecting any problems?

 

Depending upon the Manufacturer, It may be distance, time, A specific event, or any combination of these.

When you start the vehicle, it runs a set of "Readiness" tests.
The PCM may wait until these tests have completed, before "Tagging" a drive cycle.

 

Does anyone know how many of the 50 states require vehicle inspections, and what kind of rigamarole is required if you go there? Especially if you like driving cheaper older vehicles? Any horror stories of people having to come back for reinspections repeatedly?

I think we had that in Florida when I lived there in the early 70's. In Wisconsin where *I* am, there is none. But I think there might be in the Milwaukee area, but am not sure.

I'd like to know in case I decide to relocate, and then might consider not going there if they have inspections, as - aren't they another gov't hassle? Sort of like going to the DMV.

 

You may want to repost this as a new post, you'll get a response tailored to your problem