Those Red and Yellow Lights Are Not Dashboard Decorations

Most of the warning lights are obvious, like the low fuel light, but the check engine light can be tricky because it can cover a variety of potential problems - simple to major. Don't get caught on the side of the road, learn how to do preventive maintenance yourself.


Those red and yellow lights are not dashboard decorations. They are warning signals that there is a potential problem and you need to "check it out." Your dashboard has a number of different warning lights that indicate different problems - battery, gas, etc., and these should not be ignored.

When you start your car, all of the lights come on, but you should only be concerned with lights that stay on after your car is started or that come on while you are driving. This is your vehicle's way of letting you know something is wrong and you need to troubleshoot the problem.

Most of the warning lights are obvious, like the low fuel light or the battery light, but the check engine light can be tricky because it can cover a variety of potential problems.

RED WARNING LIGHT

A red warning light means there is an urgent problem. If you are driving, you need to pull over. This could mean your engine is over-heating, low oil pressure, low battery voltage, transmission over-heating, or brake failure. These problems all require immediate attention and you should not continue to drive your vehicle. A red warning light can also indicate a safety issue, but most times it means "DANGER."

Here are just a few things to check when the red light in your vehicle comes on:

-Low fluids (engine oil, transmission fluid, anti-freeze, brake fluid).
-Alternator issues (low voltage), not charge the battery, faulty battery.
-Broken belts.

YELLOW WARNING LIGHT

A yellow warning light is an indication of a potential problem. This is a warning signal. Some common things that may cause the yellow light to come on (Service engine soon) include:

-Computer system problems.
-Emissions problems.
-Anti-lock brake systems.

This means that you need to bring your car in for servicing. Before you go, you may want to troubleshoot your problems to save yourself some time and money. Take a look at the troubleshooting videos at 4 U Car Online and see if you can't rule out some of the minor problems yourself.

Never, ever ignore warning lights. These matter require your attention and if not resolved, could cause major damage to your vehicle resulting in expensive repairs.

Preventive maintenance to check your fluids, your belts and hoses, and your battery will help reduce the chances of breakdowns on the road. If you're not a "mechanic," but mechanically inclined, take a look a some of the videos and see how easy it is to do this maintenance yourself.

Videos are the way of the world. From entertainment to education, one can learn just about anything from videos, including how to care for your car. If you would like to learn how to do preventive maintenance and/or minor car repairs, take a look at http://www.4ucaronline.com and see how things are done step-by-step.