1996 Taurus 3.0 Ghia service engine soon light keeps coming on..
Asked by Allan Apr 17, 2012 at 04:11 AM about the 1996 Ford Taurus
Question type: Maintenance & Repair
I have a 1996 NZ New Taurus 3.0 Ghia and my service engine soon light keeps coming on.. I've had the car serviced and they said all was fine.. It's done 77k miles, low for it's age. I keep disconnecting the neg battery terminal to reset the computer, but it comes back on after 2 days.. I don't know if the Titamium plugs have been changed. Would this annoy it sufficiently to keep flagging the light??
7 Answers
Check engine lights can come on for a # of reasons. could be misfires, could be running rich/lean, could be a EVAP problem. Take it to a qualified garage and have them scan the computer to see what the code is for. if the light comes on after 2 days there is a problem and all is not fine. Does the car have any noticeable drive-ability issues?
Hi Chris. Drives fine, starts first time every time. Just did a 260 km round trip yesterday with no issues. Smooth and quiet... I am l,oathe to take it to Fairview Ford, as their prices are just ridiculous.. Might Try AA service centre for diagnostic.
If there are no problem wit how it drives it is most likely either a EVAP issue or the air/fuel mixture is just slightly off. this could be caused by a very dirty air filter "unlikely though", a dirty mass air flow sensor or a dirty throttle plate. the main part would be to get the code. most auto parts stores will scan your car for free. if you get that done come back on here and let me know what it is and i will help you further.
I think Chris may be getting your problem confused. From what I read, it is your 'Service' Indicator Light, and Chris seems to be writing about your Engine Management Light. What he said is 100% correct if you have an Engine Management light on. As it is only a Service Light, there should be a way of resetting your service interval. Ususally, to reset to Service Light, you go along the lines of Holding the Trip Reset button one the odometer for a few seconds with the ignition off, Without releasing the button, click the ignition in so all the lights on the dash come up and keep hold of the button until... Well, something happens... I'm not sure what your car would do. Google search how to reset service light on your car (steps I gave you, I know work on PSA cars)
Hey David. Chris is right this time.. These cars light up the 'service engine soon' light at the drop of a hat.. I need to plug it into a diagnostic to get the codes.. My Jaguar XJ8 used to do this as well.. I used to ignore the light and it would go off eventually.. The Jag used to do it if I hadn't used it for a couple of weeks and would decide I needed to replace all the catalytic converters, which was nonsense.... Same technology as Ford owned Jaguar at the time.....
