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2004 Chevrolet Malibu

 

Question: Check engine light blinks and then after a day or 2 is goes back off on its own

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marella, 2.2L 4 Cylinder, Middletown, CT, July 28, 2011, 18:49
 Rookie

I took it to the dealer to have it checked but they said everything seemed fine. the computer didnt read anything. when it blinks, i feel a jerking action so i hit more on the gas pedal but the car stops completely and if i try starting it up again again, it wont. i thought it might be the battery, but the dealer told me that the battery was fine. I also thought it was the spark plugs or maybe the oil filter but again the dealer told me they were also fine. This problem happened to me 5 times in the past 2 years. So i asked them to change the spark plugs and the oil filter and they did but still the problem is there. Dont know what to do. Is it that serious? because it often happens on highways

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  • Answer #1

    patrick mannion from Greg Solow's Engine Room, July 28, 2011, 19:26
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     Master

    A blinking Check Engine light means there is something noticed by the computer in your car that is likely to cause serious damage to the catalytic converter, if the light is blinking there has to be a code stored in the computer in your car. If the "problem" is not seen by the computer in your car on two identical drive cycles where the criteria is the same as when the computer had seen the fault the computer will turn off the light and assume the problem has been fixed or was a fluke. On most cars it would be an intermittent ignition coil failure or a fuel injector intermittently going bad, or a intermittent electrical problem but if the light was on the dealer should have seen a fault in the computer, its odd they say they didn't.

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    marella, July 28, 2011, 20:11
     Rookie

    Thanx Patrick. No the light wasnt on when i took the car to the dealer. The problem is that the car doesnt move when the check engine starts blinking. It stops completely. They say i should come to them when its on but i cant because it doesnt move. I thought the code should be stored even if the check engine light turns off

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  • Answer #2

    feroman316 July 28, 2011, 21:12
     Enthusiast

    check coil pack

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