Kinetech Motor Werkes will list the common reasons why your BMWs check engine light has come on further below, but the question is more whether it is safe to continue to drive your Beemer with the check engine light on. We don’t recommend it because there could be something seriously wrong with your BMW’s engine. Let’s talk about the check engine light and the problems it reports.
How the Check Engine Light Works
Your BMW has an engine control unit (ECU) that constantly monitors all of the vehicle’s systems while the engine is running. Each system has its own computer chip that sends data to the ECU. If a system experiences an error, it will send an error code to the ECU to let the ECU know what is wrong. For example, if the oxygen sensor is failing, there’s a specific error code for that. Once the ECU receives the error code, it turns on the associated warning light. If there is not a specific warning light for the error, it will turn on the check engine light.
How the Check Engine Light Is Illuminated
If the check engine light turns on and remains on steadily, it’s possible that what is going on underneath the hood isn’t too serious. It might even be something as simple as a loose gas cap after you’ve filled your Beemer with gasoline. If the check engine light turns on and off constantly, this flashing is meant to alert you that there is a serious engine problem and you should stop driving your BMW right away.
Reasons Why the Check Engine Light Is On
As we said above, there are many reasons why the check engine light comes on because this light serves as a catch-all for engine problems that do not have a dashboard warning light of their own. Reasons, why you’ve received this specific warning, include
- Air metering issues
- Bad/misfiring spark plugs
- Battery trouble
- Faulty ECU
- Faulty emissions control unit
- Faulty MAF sensor
- Faulty oxygen sensor
- Fuel metering issues
- Ignition system errors
- Loose/missing gas cap
- Transmission problems
As you can see, there are a ton of reasons why the check engine light comes on, which is why it’s important to have a diagnostic check done as soon as possible. If you continue to drive your Beemer with the check engine light on, you risk damaging the engine further.
We don’t want that to happen here at Kinetech Motor Werkes in Indian Trail, NC, which is why we’d be happy to run a diagnostic test on your Beemer to get to the bottom of the check engine warning.
