Engine Warning Light on Vauxhall Corsa 1.2, What Could it Mean?

[weltweit]

Engine warning light flashed at me a couple of times on my way to work then went off.

On my way home it came on again and this time stayed on.

And the engine seemed rough, perhaps not firing on one cylinder. Sounded uneven also.

What does the Urban mind think?

I have put a call in to the AA but I am not a priority so long wait possibly even tomorrow.

 

[weltweit]

Oil level was ok ..

 

[SpookyFrank]

Engine warning light flashed at me a couple of times on my way to work then went off.

On my way home it came on again and this time stayed on.

And the engine seemed rough, perhaps not firing on one cylinder. Sounded uneven also.

What does the Urban mind think?

I have put a call in to the AA but I am not a priority so long wait possibly even tomorrow.

I have the same car. Engine timing was off after I changed the battery. Luckily stalling at a red light going uphill and restarting the engine fixed it.

 

[Duncan2]

obd scanner?

 

[weltweit]

I have the same car. Engine timing was off after I changed the battery. Luckily stalling at a red light going uphill and restarting the engine fixed it.

Had you had your engine warning light on?

 

[SpookyFrank]

Had you had your engine warning light on?

Yes. Also the car was lacking power and the engine was sounding/feeling wrong, like what you describe. Besides electrics, it could be the timing belt.

 

[weltweit]

Yes. Also the car was lacking power and the engine was sounding/feeling wrong, like what you describe. Besides electrics, it could be the timing belt.

In mine it is a chain

 

[tommers]

In mine it is a chain

Could be the timing chain.

 

[Puddy_Tat]

I'm not expert in Vauxhalls, but a friend had a Corsa and bits of the engine basically ended up disintegrating, so probably not worth pushing your luck.

With my car (a Citroen) it occasionally has a bit of a sulk if I leave it a bit late changing down - it has once gone in to 'limp mode' which sounds bloody rough, but was OK once I'd turned it off and on again, and then the warning light and 'anti pollution faulty' message will come up the next few times I turn it on. It's a known thing with them.

Are you stuck somewhere? Would have thought the AA should get to you before tomorrow not leave you stranded overnight.

If you are at home, may be worth seeing if there's an owners' forum on the interwebs and see if there's any advice to be had.

 

[weltweit]

Are you stuck somewhere? Would have thought the AA should get to you before tomorrow not leave you stranded overnight.

I am at home, I made it back rather than stopping at the roadside.
Unfortunately that made me a lower priority with the AA so they are coming between 7am and 9 in the morning.

If you are at home, may be worth seeing if there's an owners' forum on the interwebs and see if there's any advice to be had.

I have had a bit of a google so far, there is some info out there ..

 

[weltweit]

I am hoping that when the engine warning light comes on the engine goes into limp mode which would be a better outcome for the engine than it failing in normal running.

So far my googling hasn't uncovered if Corsa's of my vintage have a limp mode, I know quite a few more modern cars have it though.

 

[Ax^]

hmm first how old

if its over 15 years old

get a spanner and unplug the battery for 2 minutes

plug back in and go for a spin see if it comes back on

did you let its fuel drop quite low ?

 

[SpookyFrank]

I'm not expert in Vauxhalls, but a friend had a Corsa and bits of the engine basically ended up disintegrating, so probably not worth pushing your luck.

With my car (a Citroen) it occasionally has a bit of a sulk if I leave it a bit late changing down - it has once gone in to 'limp mode' which sounds bloody rough, but was OK once I'd turned it off and on again, and then the warning light and 'anti pollution faulty' message will come up the next few times I turn it on. It's a known thing with them.

Are you stuck somewhere? Would have thought the AA should get to you before tomorrow not leave you stranded overnight.

If you are at home, may be worth seeing if there's an owners' forum on the interwebs and see if there's any advice to be had.

Mine's twenty years old. Still loads of that model (Corsa C I think) on the roads, newer ones less so. See also; nissan micras.

 

[weltweit]

hmm first how old

if its over 15 years old

get a spanner and unplug the battery for 2 minutes

plug back in and go for a spin see if it comes back on

did you let its fuel drop quite low ?

Half a tank of fuel

Oil in the middle of the dipstick

It hasn't been over revved, I drive it quite conservatively

Got the AA in the morning

So far they have always fixed my vehicles at the roadside, hoping that trend will continue

 

[Ax^]

could be something as simple as a failing coil pack on that car "shit that sits on top of your spark plugs" or bad spark plugs
could be something worse

good you got the AA have a nosey

 

[weltweit]

Hopefully the diagnostic info will be a guide

 

[Ax^]

aye as you said it vintage they always had simple engine so unless it something drastic should not be to expensive

 

[dessiato]

I had a Vauxhall for many years. This sort of problem was sometimes down to needing a new air filter. Might be worth a try

 

[mx wcfc]

My old Zafira had an engine warning light on for years. It carried on. Service people plugged it in and couldn't work it out.I Stopped worrying about it.

 

[Ax^]

used to turn mine off before getting an MOT by plugging the battery out for a few minutes


quite sure I talked about it on the banger thread whilst owning it

 

[Elpenor]

Have driven thousands of miles in various German and Japanese cars with engine warning light on. Never a reason as to why it was on.

Oddly my current car used to have it on all the time when I lived in Berkshire but hasn’t really been on at all since I moved away.

 

[WouldBe]

Have driven thousands of miles in various German and Japanese cars with engine warning light on. Never a reason as to why it was on.

Oddly my current car used to have it on all the time when I lived in Berkshire but hasn’t really been on at all since I moved away.

Better air in Devon.

There you go weltweit move to Devon, that should sort it.

 

[cesare]

could be something as simple as a failing coil pack on that car "shit that sits on top of your spark plugs" or bad spark plugs
could be something worse

good you got the AA have a nosey

My intermittent engine warning light turned out to be a faulty spark plug, but we replaced coils before we found that out

 

[Steel Icarus]

It's your tappets.

 

[weltweit]

My old Zafira had an engine warning light on for years. It carried on. Service people plugged it in and couldn't work it out.I Stopped worrying about it.

Have driven thousands of miles in various German and Japanese cars with engine warning light on. Never a reason as to why it was on.

Oddly my current car used to have it on all the time when I lived in Berkshire but hasn’t really been on at all since I moved away.

I am not going to risk running the car with the light on, the engine felt and sounded as if it had lost a cylinder anyhow running it could damage it further. Will know more when AA person is here.

 

[weltweit]

My intermittent engine warning light turned out to be a faulty spark plug, but we replaced coils before we found that out

I am hoping it is something simple and cheap to fix like that

 

[SpookyFrank]

Better air in Devon.

There you go weltweit move to Devon, that should sort it.

It costs more in suspension springs though

 

[cesare]

I am hoping it is something simple and cheap to fix like that

The AA will have one of those gadgets to test which cylinder is misfiring.

 

[weltweit]

Better air in Devon.

There you go weltweit move to Devon, that should sort it.

Perhaps the engine is swamped by a surfeit of Devon cream teas

 

[weltweit]

I am wondering about how the light behaved ..

First on my way to work it flashed a few times - suggesting something intermitant

Then on my way home it came on and stayed on - suggesting whatever the fault was it had become more established

And then I noticed the loss of power and apparent running on 2 cylinders, or at least unevenly