Check Engine/ maintenace required lights

[Brent1238]

My 2005 Corolla S has roughly 99,200 miles on it. About a week ago my "maintenance required" light came on and will not go away. After looking in my manual, it stated that it was a reminder to get an oil change (....why doesn't it just say THAT?!). My last oil change was done by me. How do I reset the light? Could it be anything other than the oil change reminder?

Also, today as I was driving, my "Check Engine" light came on. I didn't have the time to check it in the manual today, but I am assuming because it is almost hitting 100k miles, it is a reminder for a tune up? Is this true, or could it be something else? I can't afford a tune up right now, I would have to wait until the summer. If its been maintained routinely, do you think a tune up is even necessary, or is it more likely just a way for dealerships to make money?

One last thing (not that important) Does anyone's key not want to turn in the ignition sometimes? I have a very hard time starting my car from time to time (roughly once every 1-2 months). Just curious what other people think.

[mikered30]

CEL can be checked at autozone or advance auto for free. It does not come on at 100K miles and is necessary to be looked at. It wont pass inspection with it on.

[hardtopte72]

It reads MAINT REQD because changing the oil is not the only part of the 5K maintenance (which includes tire rotation, and depending on the mileage things like coolant, air filters, plugs, other fluid changes, etc.)

To reset the light follow this procedure

1. Turn the key to the ON position but do not start the car
2. Set the TRIP/RESET switch to the ODO setting
3. Turn the key to the OFF position
4. Press and hold the TRIP/RESET switch with your left hand.
5. While continuing the hold the TRIP/RESET switch simultaneously turn the key to the ON position with your right hand but do not start the car.
6. You should see a series of dashes pop up and disappear one by one. When you see 5 zeros like 00000 it is reset.
7. Start your car and verify the light is off.

[boberic]

Originally Posted by Brent1238

One last thing (not that important) Does anyone's key not want to turn in the ignition sometimes? I have a very hard time starting my car from time to time (roughly once every 1-2 months). Just curious what other people think.

Pretty much every car does that if the streering wheel gets turned after you shut it off or if you shut it off with the wheels turned under some circumstances. Next time it gives you this trouble, just wiggle the steering wheel, you should then be able to easily turn the key.

If this isn't your issue, then you'll have to take it to a mechanic to look at what needs to be replaced. I for one would not open up the steering column on any car with an airbag unless I had really good instructions first.

[Brent1238]

Thanks everybody. Yeah I just brought it to Advance Auto Parts today and ran a diagnostic on it it said "P0171 Mod $10 Bank 1 System too lean" I was told by a few people who know more about cars than I do (not hard) that it is more than likely an O2 sensor. I brought it to Monro Mufflers and they told me that it could be that, but could also be a bunch of other things causing the Check Engine light. What is your opinion? They wanted $100 to run a diagnostic and I walked out because I don't want to get screwed over without checking in more. Would an O2 sensor be a fairly easy fix? Could it be that the MAF sensor being dirty? Where is this located to check?

The Maintenance required light did not go off after I filled my coolant and I do not need an oil change yet. I am unsure if it is the spark plugs. I will have to look into that next. Any other suggestions?

With the ignition: thank you for the suggestion! I will try to wiggle the steering wheel the next time it happens to see if it may have locked up. It rarely happens so that could very well be it.

[shoujiliuzhijun]

Originally Posted by Brent1238

Thanks everybody. Yeah I just brought it to Advance Auto Parts today and ran a diagnostic on it it said "P0171 Mod $10 Bank 1 System too lean" I was told by a few people who know more about cars than I do (not hard) that it is more than likely an O2 sensor. I brought it to Monro Mufflers and they told me that it could be that, but could also be a bunch of other things causing the Check Engine light. What is your opinion? They wanted $100 to run a diagnostic and I walked out because I don't want to get screwed over without checking in more. Would an O2 sensor be a fairly easy fix? Could it be that the MAF sensor being dirty? Where is this located to check?

The Maintenance required light did not go off after I filled my coolant and I do not need an oil change yet. I am unsure if it is the spark plugs. I will have to look into that next. Any other suggestions?

With the ignition: thank you for the suggestion! I will try to wiggle the steering wheel the next time it happens to see if it may have locked up. It rarely happens so that could very well be it.

Another P0171. Did the temperature drop that day? I would suggest read this topic and start with MAF cleaning and intake manifold gasket replacement instead of O2 sensor, because they are the cheapest things to try.

2004 Corolla P0171 code (system to lean)

[MasterTecInSTL]

While I have seen it a couple of times it's actually VERY RARE for a bad O2 sensor to cause a P0171 (lean) code. I would say out of probably at least 2000 cars I've run into with P0171 set maybe two of them were due to a bad O2 sensor.

Auto parts stores like to say that an O2 sensor could be at fault because... well because they want to sell you an O2 sensor! It's a good money item they can sell real quick and once it is installed it can't be returned for a refund - even if it doesn't fix the problem. This is why I always tell people to take recommendations made by auto parts store as a result of their free scans with a grain of salt.

About 95% of the time a P0171 (on any car) is due to a dirty mass air flow sensor or a vacuum leak (usually an intake gasket on these, especially with cooler weather). Probably about 3% of the time the P0171 is set due to someone putting E85 in their non flex-fuel car, and probably 1.9% of the time the P0171 is due to someone making modifications to their air intake system.

[johnoh]

three suggestions:

clean your maf and see if that fixes the p0171 issue
Where's the MAF located?

if you get p0171 again and are handy, replacing the intake manifold gasket costs $30 and is a problem for many corollas especially in cold weather

on the hard to start question, the corolla gets some air in the fuel line sometimes when you try to start it after its been off for just a few minutes, which makes it hard to start. Not much you can do about it

[MasterTecInSTL]

Originally Posted by johnoh

three suggestions:

clean your maf and see if that fixes the p0171 issue
Where's the MAF located?

if you get p0171 again and are handy, replacing the intake manifold gasket costs $30 and is a problem for many corollas especially in cold weather

on the hard to start question, the corolla gets some air in the fuel line sometimes when you try to start it after its been off for just a few minutes, which makes it hard to start. Not much you can do about it

What are you talking about air in the fuel line? How do you think air is getting into these fuel lines (without a fuel leak being present)??? Can you site a link that shows this?

I've heard of check valves going bad in a fuel pump allowing fuel pressure to be lost when the key is shut off but not on these Toyotas.

I do have to agree with the intake gasket though although the cost should be under $10 and not even close to $30. A vacuum leak caused by this gasket can also make it harder to start, especially in cold weather.

[johnoh]

Originally Posted by MasterTecInSTL

What are you talking about air in the fuel line? How do you think air is getting into these fuel lines (without a fuel leak being present)??? Can you site a link that shows this?

I've heard of check valves going bad in a fuel pump allowing fuel pressure to be lost when the key is shut off but not on these Toyotas.

I do have to agree with the intake gasket though although the cost should be under $10 and not even close to $30. A vacuum leak caused by this gasket can also make it harder to start, especially in cold weather.

here'e the tsb. Just to point out, heat soak/vaporlock is different from air entering the line, but I was trying to keep it basic for the OP.

http://matrixowners.com/tsb/T-EG053-06.pdf

you are right about the intake manifold gasket price. No idea why I remembered it as a $30 item.

[MasterTecInSTL]

OK that TSB doesn't mention anything about air in the line.. it only mentions a loss of fuel pressure causing an extended crank time and possibly a crank/no start condition. However it does apply to '05 and '06 models so it could possibly be what the OP is experiencing but I doubt it.

It still must be pretty rare considering I've never run into it before, but then again I don't work at a Toyota dealer so it's hard to tell. Being the TSB was published in 9/06 it looks like they caught the vast majority of these while they were still "new" and under warranty.

This has absolutely nothing to do with vapor lock/heat soak - rather most likely a check valve issue in the pump itself or even a defective winding in the electric pump motor. If it were a vapor lock issue then replacing the pump wouldn't do squat. The TSB doesn't go into details about this rather it only states that some fuel pumps might not generate the proper pressure the vehicle needs after sitting for a while.

I have a feeling that this was problematic early in the cars' lives and not 7+ years and 99k+ miles later. In other words, if this was a problem with the OP's vehicle it would have probably started to occur a long time ago!

Heat Soak/Vapor Lock issues used to occur when the fuel in the lines would evaporate. This was a big problem with carbureted vehicles as the fuel pump was on the engine and "pulled" fuel out from the tank. If air was in the line it could lose its prime and the vehicle would then fail to start. Since modern fuel injected cars have the pump in the tank that pushes the fuel up to the engine it is almost impossible for a vehicle to fail to start due to a vapor lock condition.

[johnoh]

I read on another forum (can't find it now) was that it is vaporlock condition that only happens when trying to start the car when the engine is hot but has been off for about 5-10 minutes. The fuel evaporates a little within the line due to the combination of engine heat, and not enough line pressure from the pump. After a few minutes the pump is able to repressurize the line which is why it only happens in a short window. Replacing the pump fixed the issue because a little extra pressure in the line was all that was needed. With the engine cold there was enough pressure on every start, so the problem only manifested itself occassionally, 5 minutes after turning off a hot engine. This sounds plausible to me, though you seem to have absolute certainty that it is wrong. Whatever......

[hardtopte72]

Originally Posted by Brent1238

Thanks everybody. Yeah I just brought it to Advance Auto Parts today and ran a diagnostic on it it said "P0171 Mod $10 Bank 1 System too lean" I was told by a few people who know more about cars than I do (not hard) that it is more than likely an O2 sensor. I brought it to Monro Mufflers and they told me that it could be that, but could also be a bunch of other things causing the Check Engine light. What is your opinion? They wanted $100 to run a diagnostic and I walked out because I don't want to get screwed over without checking in more. Would an O2 sensor be a fairly easy fix? Could it be that the MAF sensor being dirty? Where is this located to check?

The Maintenance required light did not go off after I filled my coolant and I do not need an oil change yet. I am unsure if it is the spark plugs. I will have to look into that next. Any other suggestions?

With the ignition: thank you for the suggestion! I will try to wiggle the steering wheel the next time it happens to see if it may have locked up. It rarely happens so that could very well be it.

It looks like my post went way over your head. I literally gave you step by step instructions on how to clear the light and the reason it is not called a "CHANGE OIL" light but is called a "MAINT REQD" light. This is because you are not simply changing oil. The 5k light is for maintenance which depending on mileage includes a lot more than an oil change (on a 2006 V6 Camry it includes a timing belt at 90k)

As far as the check engine light if it went on as the temperature dropped(cold night) then it is most likely the intake gasket. However the MAF sensor, a VSV that is failed, or an A/F sensor can cause a lean condition.

[truthnexile]

Thanks. Exactly what I was looking for. I haven't tried it yet, but it sounds plausible to me.

[truthnexile]

Hardtopte72,
Thank you much. Your instructions were correct-piece of cake.