Hi y'all, the White Sox are presently "off and running" up 3-0 after a half inning , but I digress...

I just had my 10,000 mile oil service, which was very cool in general since they also took care of my hit list of minor issues (Definite kudos to Patrick MINI in Schaumburg, IL...). Anyhow, before driving off in a loaner (blue/black CVT MC) I asked the Service Manager if they routinely pulled the codes (the ones that light the SES light) during the 10k service. He says no, but for a fee (since it was not currently lit) they would be happy to do it... Long story short, I take a pass.

Background:
The very first time my SES light came on, say around 5,000 miles or so, I did drive it in and have them read the codes and clear the light. It was described to me as a bogus loose gas cap code, in other words don't worry, they see it all the time etc...

Between 5k and 10k miles (is it just me or is it weird to describe "miles" with a "k" LOL), the light came on (and eventually went away after a day or 3)... I figgered it was probably more loose cap codes, but then I started to get paranoid.

That was why I asked about pulling the codes at the 10k oil service, even though the SES wasn't lit at that precise time.

You have guessed it by now, the DAY after my oil change, I'm driving home from work, warm engine, 35mph speed limit, many stop lights... I'm idling at a red light, thinking how cool my dealership is, when the SES light comes on. It's still on, (well not technically since my car is parked outside, but you know what i mean).

THanks for bearing with me this long.

Do I need to get a scanner so I can figure out what the car is trying to tell me, (as opposed to just assuming it's another bogus loose gas cap). Seems like I'd also need a list of codes and their meanings, huh?

Should I drop everything and run to the dealership before the damn thing clears itself again? There was no charge for the first "read", it just wasn't part of the 1st service. I don't fault the dealership for not being able to do it for free.

I don't relish the idea of "Oh, it just DOES that once in a while" at all. Then again, those scanners are not $12 items, even though I can't stand not knowing that there's really nothing wrong.

Thanks for listening,
Tatt

 

My 05 MCSc SES light has come on and gone off about 10 times in the last 4 months. It is currently on. It usually stays on about 3 days and then goes off for about 2 days, probably related to the number of times the car is started. I called my dealer shortly after it came on the first time and was advised that it was probably an ECU issue and would be fixed at my first scheduled service. He said as long as it is not flashing on and off it will not hurt anything to keep driving it. My dealer is a couple of hours away so I decided to keep driving it until my first service was due. I will be taking it in next week as I am now only 250 miles from the service being due. Other than the ECU issue are there other potential causes of the recurring light? It is NOT a loose gas cap as this was the first thing I checked. The car seems to run fine, other than a slight hesitation around 3K rpms. Once in a while it idles rough first thing in the morning.

Thanks.

 

The SES light (non-flashing) is usually nothing serious...but not always!!! Check out this recent thread...My poor Chili Pepper

 

Thanks for the detailed response. I was told the same thing as far as "don't worry aboudit", but still paranoia remains... I also know it's not a "loose gas cap" (although, don't take the cap off with the motor running).

I hope you can let me know the outcome, when you go for the oil change, and thanks...

More SES thoughts welcome,
Tatt

 

Do you have an MCS automatic? There was an ECU issue with the O2 sensor but that should have been fixed. There's at least one thread about it here on NAM, and Ian has a good summary, with links on this page:

http://www.gbmini.net/mtblog/archive...n_of_ses.shtml

-- Jay

 

I am sorry, i USED to have my spec in my sig. MCS manual, all is good, except for that obnox. yellow light on my tachometer. I did read that thread, thanks.

Tatt