1999 Jetta (i'm a girl and know nothing about cars)

[Alisa123456]

From what i'm reading i think a check engine light is a common thing to come on? Mine has come on a couple times the place i bought it from told me that 1. when it is cold out and the car has been sitting (like over night) the check engine light can come on 2. If the fuel pressure is low when you start it and can come on 3. they have to be run with premium gas.

Does anyone know if this is true? The car is a 1999 Jetta GLS 2.0
I am a girl and really know nothing about cars i have had honda's all my life and VW's are way different.

[miro1118]

You should read up on this board a little to familiarize yourself with the potential for your problem.

Many things can cause the light to come on. Too many to list here.

As far as what your mechanic told you:

1) Nope. Every car in the northern states would have a check engine light on if this were the case.
2) Possible but not probable you would have a bad fuel pump or filter and the car would not run well.
3) Your manual will tell you what kind of gas to use. I think that 87 should be good for your case.

That being said you need to take the car to a place that will read the computer for you (Autozone?) They will be able to tell you why the light is on.

[teenie]

If all Autozones are the same, which I assume they are, their computer thing won't read the codes. The last time I tried (last year) it was still a dealership thing. VW likes to keep a lot of stuff through the dealership as long as they can-maybe they make more money that way?

Most garages around where I live will put your car on a computer for an hour free of charge, then about $55 an hour thereafter. All the problems I've had were found within the hour, and all of them would have caused major problems if left unattended. When your check engine light lights, it's indicating there's a problem. I'd get it solved ASAP.

[Albatross]

If you have the newer body style Jetta, as in you bought it in the second half of 1999, I have the same model and engine.

If your engine light is blinking, you should take your car in immediately and not drive it. If it is not blinking, you should take it in to a regular mechanic or Volkswagen dealership at some point. If you don't know much about cars, bring a guy friend with you; mechanics often lie and can sense if you don't know much about cars. Last time I brought in my Jetta for an oil change, they checked my engine light problem free of charge.

Usually, the light comes on if your car is having some problem with emissions. You could need work on your car, or there may be something easy to do like change your oil, tighten your gas cap, or fill your engine coolant. Most engine light problems will not cost you an arm and a leg, but should not be ignored.

Suggested course of action:
1) make sure your gas cap is on tight
2) check, or have a friend check your engine fluid levels
(if one of the above solve your problem, your engine light will go off within a day)
3) If your light is still on, go see the mechanic or VW dealer.

Best of luck,
Albatross

[sio675]

have you ever filled your car with gas with engine running? If so this could also be the cause..

[prettymachine]

i jsut took my jetta to autozone the other day to have them check my light. their tester gave the code and we had to go in and look that up. so, yes thats a good place to start.

another common thing to cause a CEL to come on is not getting the gas cap back on tight after fueling. its happened once to my jetta and once to my mom's avalon. (in Oregon we aren;t allowed to pump our own gas, so no comments about that ) :P