service engine soon light

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NCV-VT - 16 Jul 2005 03:04 GMT

2002 Explorer XLT V-8. The light came on today at 65,970 miles and
stayed on through three starts (only first one was a cold start). Gas cap
is on ok. 50 miles into a fresh tank of gas from the place I always fill
up. So what is really up? How much should I have to pay for a scan if one
is really needed? Is it really OK to drive it this way until it goes to the
Ford shop?

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Jim Warman - 16 Jul 2005 07:37 GMT

Is it OK to drive this way??? No way to tell until we know what is turning
on the light. How much should you pay to read codes? There are many generic
scan tools out there with enough "advice" to lead you well astray.... The
scan tool I use is about $20,000CA and has features that make diagnosis
easier.

It's like furniture... if you feel you deserve a $200 sofa, you will buy a
$200 sofa..... If you feel you deserve something better, you will follow
your heart.

In all honesty, continuing to operate your car with a known problem can and
will increase the price of the repair as the faulty part(s) affect other
parts. For my own part... my wife and son are both drivers. It would be
unconscionable for me to allow them to stray from home in vehicles that are
less than reliable.

The woodworking newsgroups have one overwhelming piece of advice.... "better
to pay the price and cry once rather than cry every time we use it...".

Let's not forget that techs are like chefs.... the burger flipper at Mickey
Ds (DING - fries are done) makes a lot less than the guy char-broiling your
$15 rib-eye..There's a reason for that....

> 2002 Explorer XLT V-8. The light came on today at 65,970 miles and
> stayed on through three starts (only first one was a cold start). Gas cap
> is on ok. 50 miles into a fresh tank of gas from the place I always fill
> up. So what is really up? How much should I have to pay for a scan if one
> is really needed? Is it really OK to drive it this way until it goes to the
> Ford shop?

Reply to this Message

Happy Traveler - 16 Jul 2005 22:14 GMT

This group has one advantage over Mickey D's - a few knowledgeable, and more
importantly, willing to help guys, like Jim are here. So if you go to
Autozone and have the codes pulled (for free), there is a good chance that
one of them will point you in the direct direction - or at least make an
educated guess. No way to tell anything without reading the codes.

And by the way, with a bit of willing to learn and a few good books, the
laptop based, inexpensive scanners are probably good enough for the
hobbyist. I own one of those, and for the last five years it was able to
nail every single power train problem on my two OBDII Fords. Now, if it
would only run cylinder balance, diagnose the A/C and bleed the ABS pump, I
would be a happy traveler indeed. Time to start saving...

BTW2: $15 for a rib-eye? Can't get one here for that price, and that's in US
dollars...

> Let's not forget that techs are like chefs.... the burger flipper at Mickey
> Ds (DING - fries are done) makes a lot less than the guy char-broiling your
> $15 rib-eye..There's a reason for that....
>
> > 2002 Explorer XLT V-8. The light came on today at 65,970 miles and
> > stayed on

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mikephotos - 19 Jul 2005 19:34 GMT

Had my SES light come on a few days ago. My friend pulled the code (P0401)
with a $200 reader and I researched the problem on the forums and did the
work myself. Part cost-$32, Labor-$0 :)

Get the code read at Autozone and see if it's something that you can fix
yourself. If not, then by all means bring it in.

BTW: Here's the write-up I did for the DPFE replacement

http://www.rampslides.com/explorer/dpfe.html

Mike

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flies4fun - 16 Jul 2005 15:50 GMT

Autozone read mine for free.

> 2002 Explorer XLT V-8. The light came on today at 65,970 miles and
> stayed on through three starts (only first one was a cold start). Gas cap
> is on ok. 50 miles into a fresh tank of gas from the place I always fill
> up. So what is really up? How much should I have to pay for a scan if
> one is really needed? Is it really OK to drive it this way until it goes
> to the Ford shop?

Reply to this Message

NCV-VT - 17 Jul 2005 01:22 GMT

Thanks, guys,

Should have been clearer in original post. Before the warning light came
on, I had already made an appointment for LOF at the Ford shop for Tuesday
anyhow. I was concerned about any driving between Friday night and Tues
a.m.

By the way, the light is still on after two cold starts. Owner's manual
says to give it three cold start / mixed driving cycles and it may go away
if it was fuel system issue like water in the tank.

> 2002 Explorer XLT V-8. The light came on today at 65,970 miles and
> stayed on through three starts (only first one was a cold start). Gas cap
> is on ok. 50 miles into a fresh tank of gas from the place I always fill
> up. So what is really up? How much should I have to pay for a scan if
> one is really needed? Is it really OK to drive it this way until it goes
> to the Ford shop?

Reply to this Message

NCV-VT - 20 Jul 2005 03:43 GMT

End of the story: At the dealer today:

diagnosis: bad DPFE sensor.
repair cost: parts $30.07; labor: $20.40.

> 2002 Explorer XLT V-8. The light came on today at 65,970 miles and
> stayed on through three starts (only first one was a cold start). Gas cap
> is on ok. 50 miles into a fresh tank of gas from the place I always fill
> up. So what is really up? How much should I have to pay for a scan if
> one is really needed? Is it really OK to drive it this way until it goes
> to the Ford shop?

Reply to this Message