Citroen C3 SX - Citroen C3 Engine Management Light

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Fri 6 Aug 2010 10:12
Citroen C3 SX - Citroen C3 Engine Management Light - justonemorething

Is it possible for an independent garage's diagnostic equipment to pick up no faults when the Engine Management Light on my Citroen C3 is on? At the very least I would expect some sort of unknown code which only Citroen could decipher.

Three weeks ago a flashing Engine Management Light came on my dashboard - my C3 went into low revs and I took it straight to my local gagarge. They diagnosed 4 "unknown" faults and suggest that I took it to a Citroen dealer.

Instead, I took it to my mate who took it to his mate to reset everything on my car. Engine Management Light came back on last week (steady not flashing).

Took it to another garage for a CAT test - it passed. Gareg also did MOT (passed); and then I asked them to do a separate diagnostic test on the car. No faults found - no charge.

Is the garage covering up that they cannot read the error codes (therefore allowing me to drive around with faults on the car), or are they being genuine, in that no faults are registering despite the engine management light being on?

Somebody told me that the bulb could be faulty. I could also remember a bloke at a garage last year telling me that his light used to come on and he removed the bulb because it was so irritating.

Any advice/guidance would be greatly appreciated.

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Fri 6 Aug 2010 10:28
Citroen C3 SX - Citroen C3 Engine Management Light - madf

You are joking with this question, surely.

You are advised to use a Citroen dealer and instead took it to a mate of a mate.. Then you recite "a bloke in a garage " stories..

I take it this is a windup as you are clearly not serious about sorting your problem.

If you are serious , go to a Citroen dealer. If your "mate" and two other garages can't fix it, we have no chance.

Edited by madf on 06/08/2010 at 10:28

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Fri 6 Aug 2010 10:41
Citroen C3 SX - Citroen C3 Engine Management Light - justonemorething

There is some element of tongue-in-cheek in parts of my question I admit because I'm so peed off with the problem. Let me assure you I am serious in sorting this problem out.

I went to the latest garage on the recommendation of one of the senior automotive technicians that works with me. He has helped me out big time in the past so I have no reason to doubt his recommendation.

My question remains - can an Engine Mangement Light show on the dashboard and a diagnostic machine register no faults?? The garage in question is a specialist auto electrical garage which locally has an excellent reputation.

The Citroen specialist down the road from them would have charged me £60 before any faults were diagnosed. For information, the ignition coil and spark plugs were changed in January 2009 - these have been re-checked.

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Sat 7 Aug 2010 22:58
Citroen C3 SX - Citroen C3 Engine Management Light - Ben79

I guess the garage didn't have access to the full diagnostic system that the dealer does. Cheap systems can say there is no error because they cannot read everything.

Which engine do you have? The fault could be with something other than the engine, so the garage's cheap code reader may not be able to read the other systems.

Look on frenchcarforum.co.uk as there may be a person near you with a "Lexia" who can read the ECU fully. I'm in West Yorks and have one if that's any use.

Ben

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Sat 20 Nov 2010 18:47
Citroen C3 SX - Citroen C3 Engine Management Light - micrick65

Hi, i have citroen c3 2005.engine management light comes on after heavy rain and just when you think you've gotten use to it bleeping every time you switch on the ignition..it dissapears again ! local garage told me its the crappy sensors on the catalyltic convertor but theres nothing wrong with the cats themself..this has been happening for the best part of two years ,no problems car runs fine...

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