Not noticing your car's warning lights can be costly
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Every year, the country's car services receive thousands of requests from car owners who have noticed that one of the car's warning lights on the dashboard is on. You don't have to worry too much as it shouldn't be serious when a warning light appears on the dashboard, but it can become serious if you ignore the warning and just keep driving.
The car is equipped with various warning lights, each of which indicates that something is wrong with the car. Signal lamps may be light yellow/orange or red.
Main signal lights
If you are among the drivers who may not be aware of the meaning of the various warning lights on the dashboard, we have listed the most important ones below.
Some of the symbols may have different colors to signal the degree of importance of a detected fault in the vehicle, and thus a missed amber warning may turn red at some point if ignored.
Basically, the colors mean the following:
Red: Stop the car and turn off the engine as soon as possible. Follow the instructions in the user manual. When in doubt, call for help.
Yellow: Action required. Stop the car and turn off the engine. Follow the instructions in the owner's manual - often you can drive to the nearest garage.
Green: Used for information and does not require any action by the driver.
| Symbol | A warning |
|---|---|
 | handbrake light. If the handbrake indicator is on, check that you have released the handbrake. Even if you let it go, it may be stuck, or there is no brake fluid, or the brake lining is worn out. |
 | Engine temperature too high. The engine may be overheated. This may be due to the fact that the car has run out of coolant. Stop the car and check the coolant. |
 | Safety belt. Seat belt symbol - one or more passengers in the vehicle are not wearing a seat belt. The lamp goes out when all passengers are fastened. |
 | Engine oil - red. If the oiler symbol is red, the oil pressure is too low. Stop the car immediately and call technical assistance, who will take your car to the garage. |
 | Engine oil - yellow. If the oil can symbol is red, the vehicle is out of engine oil. Stop the car and after 10 minutes you can check the oil level when the car is on a level surface. The oil should be between the minimum and maximum marks on the dipstick. If no oil is available, check your vehicle owner's manual to see which type your vehicle uses. Add oil and turn on the machine for a maximum of 5 seconds. If the lamp goes out, you can continue driving. If the lamp continues to burn, call for help. |
 | Battery. Battery symbol - power problems. This may be due to the fact that the generator is not working. Drive straight to the garage. When the symbol is lit, some of the vehicle's electronic security systems may not be working. |
 | Braking system. Brake symbol - handbrake up? Otherwise, the symbol may signal the failure of one or more of the vehicle's brake systems. See your vehicle owner's manual for more information. |
 | ESP, ESC. Anti-slip, Anti-spin, ESC/ESP symbol - the vehicle's electronic stabilization program is active. This usually happens on wet and slippery roads. Drive carefully, avoid emergency braking and take your foot off the accelerator pedal to slow down. |
 | Air bag. Airbag and seatbelt system failure - front passenger airbag deactivated. May occur if a child car seat is installed in the front seat. Check with your mechanic if everything is in order. |
 | ENGINES. Engine symbol - tells the driver that something is wrong with the engine. If the light is orange, take the car to a garage immediately where a mechanic can troubleshoot and find the problem using the car's computer. If the symbol is red, stop the car and call for auto-assistance! |
 | ABS. ABS symbol - informs the driver that something is wrong with the ABS and / or ESP system. In most cases, the brakes continue to work even if the anti-lock braking system (ABS) and/or ESP is faulty. Thus, you can drive to the nearest workshop to correct the error. |
 | Brake pads or linings. Brake symbol - the brake pads are worn out and the brake pads of the vehicle need to be replaced. You can drive in the car, but not for long, you will have to change the pads on the blocks. |
 | Low tire pressure, TPMS. Tire pressure is important for both safety and fuel consumption. Vehicles prior to 2014 have an automatic tire pressure sensor, TPMS, that monitors your vehicle's tire pressure. If the low tire pressure indicator is on, drive to a gas station and inflate the tires with air until the correct pressure level is reached. This is measured in either bar or psi and you will find the correct level in your vehicle owner's manual. Keep in mind that the tires should be somewhat cool when you inflate them with air. |
 | Diesel particulate filter. If this light is on, it is most likely because your diesel particulate filter is clogged or has failed for some other reason. A complete replacement is expensive, so you should first call a mechanic to clean the particulate filter of soot. Your car must have a working filter, as you cannot pass MOT due to restrictions on the amount of exhaust gases. |
 | glow plug indicator. This lamp is visible on the dashboard of a diesel car when you insert the key into the ignition. You must wait to start the car until the lamp goes out, because then the car's incandescent lamp is hot enough. It takes 5-10 seconds. |
 | Low fuel indicator. The symbol lights up when you need to fill up the car. The amount of petrol in the tank depends on how much petrol is left in the tank, but you must drive straight to the gas station. |
 | Fog lamp, rear. The rear fog lamp of the car is on. Make sure it's weather-appropriate so you don't confuse other drivers on the road. |
 | Power steering service. There is a problem somewhere in the power steering system. This may be due to power steering fluid level, leaking gasket, faulty sensor or possibly worn steering rack. The car's computer can sometimes tell you the code for the problem you're looking for. |
If the lamp is yellow or orange, then this is a signal that you should be aware of a possible malfunction, stop the car, investigate and make sure that the car will be repaired in the foreseeable future.
On the other hand, if the warning light is red, stop the vehicle immediately and call for help.
How much does it cost to find a fault in my car?
It is difficult to say exactly how much it costs to find a malfunction in your particular car. If you need to troubleshoot your car, it's a good idea to get quotes from multiple places to compare garage locations, reviews from other car owners, and last but not least, pricing. Car owners who compare prices for Autobutler troubleshooting services can save an average of 18%, which is equivalent to DKK 68.
Follow these 3 tips to avoid problems
Use your vehicle's owner's manual to find out the most important symbols. Carry the instruction manual with you at all times so that you can use it as a "reference".
If the symbols are yellow or orange, check if you can continue driving. Sometimes it may be. Be sure, however, to have the car checked out at a local garage for the foreseeable future.
If the engine or oil light is red, pull over immediately—to the side of the road if you're on a motorway—and call for help.
Hear the car's warnings
Phrases like "He overlooked all the warning signs" don't seem to apply when it comes to your car, does it?
It may well be a harmless mistake when a warning light comes on, but who dares to just keep driving at the risk that something is wrong?
Most car owners are prudent enough to drive into the garage and check what's wrong with the car, but in fact, there are those who completely ignore the warning lights on the dashboard.
If you belong to the latter group, it could end up costing you a lot of money. That's why Autobutler usually hears this message from many of the country's auto repair shops: if the warning light comes on, stop the car before it's too late.
The most important signs are the most dangerous
The signal lights in your car are not all equally important. Ranked in order of importance, the oil lamp and the engine lamp are the ones that should make you react immediately. If these warnings are ignored, you risk the entire engine failing due to lack of engine oil, for example.
Autobutler related car services usually report numerous inquiries from car owners claiming the engine light is on. A glowing orange engine light is a serious problem as it means that the engine has gone into an emergency program. Therefore, as a motorist, you should take the warning seriously.
If you ignored the serious engine failure warning light, you should not count on getting under the car warranty, as you yourself caused the damage.
So not only signal lamps can glow red. Your garage bill can also explode if something goes wrong and your car's engine breaks down.
immune drivers
Today, new cars have a variety of warning lights that tell the driver that the door is not closed properly, that the rain sensor is not working properly, or that the tire pressure needs to be checked.
Some cars have more than 30 warning lights, and a large number of them certainly contributes to improving road safety.
But it can be difficult for the driver to keep track of all the warning lights. A British study found that as many as 98 percent of motorists surveyed were not even aware of the most common warning lights.
At the same time, multiple warning lights can also make car owners immune or blind to vehicle signals, since multiple warning lights do not necessarily indicate that there is something seriously wrong with the car. Although the lamp is on, it is often possible to continue driving, and therefore warning symbols may become less and less important.
If warning lights are not checked in time, this can have serious consequences. Therefore, the main rule is that if the warning light is on, before moving on, check in the car's owner's manual what this symbol means. If the color is red, always stop the car as soon as possible.
See the signal lights in your car
The symbols may vary depending on the model and year of the vehicle, so always refer to your vehicle owner's manual for the most accurate indication of the warning lights in your particular vehicle.
Alfa Romeo, Audi, BMW, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Citroen, Dacia, Fiat, Ford, Honda, Hyundai, Jeep, Kia, Land-Rover, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Mini, Mitsubishi, Nissan, Opel, Peugeot, Renault, Saab , Seat, Skoda, Smart, Suzuki, Toyota, Volkswagen/Volkswagen, Volvo.
