Check Engine/ Trac Off light

[Archie1975]

Hello. Couple of questions. My car is a 2001 Grand Am SE Coupe. I was driving along a couple of weeks ago, and noticed that when I would stop, the car seemed to idle a little rough. It continued to do this off and on for a few weeks. Anyway, about a week ago, My Check Engine light came on. It will stay on for a bit, go off. Occasionally, the check engine light will start flashing, and the the trac off light will go on. I have an appointment to take it into the dealer on Monday, but was curious as to what could be causing this. Further, the car seems to hesitate a bit when accelerating now, gas mileage isn't as good as it once was, and there is what sounds like a rattling noise coming from around the muffler area.

I planned on taking it to AutoZone tomorrow to see if they can tell me what is causing the Check Engine light, and to see if this is a repair I should do myself, or if it something I should shop around for the best rates before taking it in.

[GMMerlin]

Unfortunatly the damage is already done, but I'll explain whats going on.
Your PCM has seen a fault with the emissions system on your car and has stored a code to aid with diagnostics.
With what you describe, you have an engine missfire that is bad enough to cause damage to the converter...thats the reason the SES light was blinking...had you read your owners manual, it would have told you something along the lines of pull over and turn the engine off.

merlins suggestion...take the car to the dealer right now...don't drive it any more than you have to.
Your car is covered under a 3 year 36000 mile bumper to bumper warranty so all repairs may be of no charge to you and you may even qualify for a rental car...at no charge to you.
The converter is covered under a 8 year 80000 mile warranty.
Sounds a little drastic, but the more you drive it, the more damage you do.

[mikegee]

Originally Posted by GMMerlin

Unfortunatly the damage is already done, but I'll explain whats going on.
Your PCM has seen a fault with the emissions system on your <A TITLE="Click for more information about car" STYLE="background-color: #f0f000; " HREF="http://search.targetwords.com/u.search?x=5977|1||||cars|AA1VDw">car</A> and has stored a code to aid with diagnostics.
With what you describe, you have an engine missfire that is bad enough to cause damage to the converter...thats the reason the SES light was blinking...had you read your owners manual, it would have told you something along the lines of pull over and turn the engine off.

merlins suggestion...take the car to the dealer right now...don't drive it any more than you have to.
Your car is covered under a 3 year 36000 mile bumper to bumper warranty so all repairs may be of no charge to you and you may even qualify for a rental car...at no charge to you.
The converter is covered under a 8 year 80000 mile warranty.
Sounds a little drastic, but the more you drive it, the more damage you do.

merlin sure does know his stuff