Do check engine lights ever turn offff by themselves?

DEAR CAR TALK: I’m the original owner of a 2002 Toyota RAV4 with 135,000 miles on it.

A few months ago, my check engine light went on. The car was running fifine, but I took it to a mechanic.

He told me the sensor for the catalytic converter is bad (about $400), and the catalytic converter also might be bad (another $600).

Then, after I changed my oil, the check engine light was offff. What do you think happened? CAR TALK: A check engine light will shut itself offff if the condition that caused it is remedied.

So, if your converter is marginal, and you did a lot of stop-and-go driving, which creates high demand for the converter, that may have turned on the check engine light.

If you then did a bunch of highway driving before changing the oil, the specs may have dropped back into the normal range, causing the light to go offff.

My prediction is that the light is going to come back on again, if it hasn’t already by the time you’re reading this. And, at some point soon, it’ll stay on — and then you won’t be able to pass inspection.

So when the light comes back on, take the car back to your mechanic and have him try an oxygen sensor. At 135,000 miles, it’s very likely that you need one.

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