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2013 Ford F-150 Check Engine Light

A twinkling light indicates that the problem is relentless and if not taken care of urgently may result in major damage to the vehicle. If the check engine light in your 2013 Ford F-150 starts twinkling, that means that the problem needs immediate attention and your Ford should be brought in urgently. This glaring light usually indicates a scrupulous engine misfire allowing unburned fuel to be drained into the exhaust system. There it can immediately raise the temperature of the catalytic converter to a point where damage is usable, requiring an pricey repair. Some owners ask if spark plugs cause the check engine light to flash? This can absolutely be the cause. A bad, old or dirty spark plug can cause the engine to misfire. If your check engine light is flashing, please contact our team of automotive experts at Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg instantly by calling 3177903264. If the problem is ignored or you continue to drive, this can spread to the spark plug wires, catalytic converter, or ignition coils which can lead to a very pricey repair.

What Does the Check Engine Light Mean?

One of the most customarily misunderstood lights or indicators in your 2013 Ford F-150 is the check engine light. The check engine light is part of the onboard diagnostics system, and displays in a few disparate ways. It can say "Check Engine", it can be a symbol of an engine, it can even be a combination of both. This light lights up in either an amber or red color and is part of the diagnostics system found on your vehicle. Onboard computers increasingly have controlled and monitored vehicle performance since the 80s and do a variety of things for your 2013 Ford F-150. Some of these include controlling engine speed, ignition timing, shifting automatic transmissions and implementing stability control, just to name a bit. With that being said, the check engine light can mean a mixture of contrasting things. It can be as accepted as your gas cap being loose or as critical as engine knocking. If your check engine light is on in your 2013 Ford F-150, contact Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg. Our Ford service department can help you find out what code is turning your check engine light on or investigate why your check engine light is flashing. Contact Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg today!

How much does it cost to get the engine light checked?

The average estimate for a check engine light diagnosis & testing is customarily between $88 and $111. The good news, Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg offers complimentary multi-point inspections and free diagnostics, in most cases, to aid suggest the cause of your check engine light. The check engine light warns of issues ranging from a gas cap that's not properly tightened to a more dangerous failure like a harmful catalytic converter or a problem with one of the car's oxygen sensors, so it good to get the apt code reading and diagnosis.

2013 Ford F-150 Check Engine Light Codes

The check engine light turning on can be quite intimidating to see that little light on your vehicle’s dashboard suddenly illuminates, but in reality, it is not something that should cause you to shut down in fear honorable away. If you hear the term, diagnostic trouble codes (DTC), these are just another name for check engine light codes. These are automotive computer codes stored by the ECM, also admitted as the OBD (on-board computer diagnostic system) in your F-150. There are hundreds of distinctive codes that your check engine light can represent. While that sounds daunting, with a little patience, tackling basic diagnostics will give you useful knowledge about your vehicle and will also allow that Check Engine Light to do what it is absolutely supposed to do: be your guide. Unfortunately, discernable and useful vehicle symptoms do not always accompany an illuminated Check Engine Light. Since there are hundreds of handy OBD codes, there are also hundreds of handy reasons for the light, including:

  • Transmission issues
  • Ignition system faults
  • Bad Spark Plugs
  • Old Battery
  • Computer output circuit issues
  • Emissions controls issues
  • Loose Gas Cap or Missing Gas Cap
  • O2 Sensor
  • Fuel and air metering systems problems

This is why it is principal for someone who does not have a lot of automotive knowledge to not assume what a code means. If the engine light comes on due to a hazardous concern, you risk harmful your car further by not repairing the issue honest away. When your check engine light comes on, you should get it checked out suddenly by a certified Ford mechanic. Call Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg at 3177903264 today or schedule your check engine light service online today!

Is it safe to drive your 2013 Ford F-150 with the check engine light on?

If the check engine light is twinkling, this means that there is a relentless issue and it is recommended to service your Ford F-150 abruptly. This question is not excessively easy because it all depends on the severity of the issue. If the cause is a minor issue, such as a loose gas cap, it should be safe to drive. This is generally indicated by a steady glow of the check engine light. If you notice a difference in the performance of the vehicle, it could be an indication of a more relentless problem. Call the experts at Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg by dialing 3177903264 so you can describe the issues. Or lower your speed and bring your 2013 Ford to our certified mechanics as soon as conceivable.

How many miles can you drive with the check engine light?

It could be anything from a bad sensor to plug wires needing to be replaced. If you check engine light is flashing, we recommend that you pull over and contact Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg to assist designate if your vehicle is safe to drive in or if we recommend a tow truck. The safest bet is to decipher the code and then plan your strategy accordingly. Since each check engine code has its own level of severity, it is memorable to predict how many miles you can drive with the warning light on.

Check Engine Light Service 2013 Ford F-150

What do you do when you’re driving along in your Ford F-150 and swiftly, a yellow light illuminates on your dash and says "Check Engine". If you’re like most Ford owners, your heart sinks a few because you have microscopic idea about what that light is trying to tell you or how you should react. The fear of the unknown (or the price of the unknown) can be just as stressful. But take a deep breath and realize the light coming on doesn’t mean you have to pull the car over to the side of the road and call a tow truck, but it is recommended that you get your 2013 Ford F-150 checked as soon as usable. Ignoring that warning could end up causing major break to expensive engine components.

When your 2013 Ford F-150's ECM (electronic control module), which is the vehicle's onboard computer, finds a problem in the electronic control system that it can’t decent, a computer turns on your check engine light. This amber or yellow light is continuously labeled “check engine” or “service engine soon”, or the light may be nothing more than a picture of an engine, or a picture of the engine with the word “check.”

When the light turns on, the ECM stores an engine code or “trouble code” in its memory that identifies as the issue, whether it's a sensor or a failing engine part. This code is opt for with an electronic diagnose tool that is used by our Ford auto repair mechanics at Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg. There are also a number of relatively inexpensive code readers that are designed for do-it-yourselfers, should you choose that route too. While this code will tell you the issue that is detected, a true diagnosis still requires an professional experienced to opt for the issue and repair it.

2013 Ford F-150 Check Engine Light Flashing

Although there are countless potential causes of an illuminated Check Engine Light, we know from years of providing Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that there are numerous natural causes including something as distinct as a loose gas cap. Other natural reasons for a Check Engine Light are damaged oxygen sensor, faulty head gasket, a malfunction with the fuel injection system, dirty mass airflow sensor, faulty emissions control part, or defective spark plugs to name a few. No matter what is the root cause of the Check Engine Light, we have the Ford Certified Technicians and the certified service protocol to isolate the root problem and repair it as paramount to restore factory specifications. When this happens, the Check Engine Light turns off, and you can leave the service center knowing that your Ford issue was fixed.

Every 2013 Ford F-150 was designed with a high-technology performance monitoring system with a computer, and a series of sensors positioned strategically throughout the vehicle on its meaningful systems. The sensors are frequently detecting conditions while sending data to the electronic control unit. If the electronic control unit detects that the data is out of factory specifications, the Check Engine Light illuminates telling you that there is a problem. However, that is the limitation of the Check Engine Light – it won’t tell you what exactly is untrue nor what to do about it. That’s where we come in; Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg provides a Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that isolates the core problem and gives you a recommendation on what to do next from a Greatly Qualified Service licensed.

Will the check engine light reset itself?

The check engine light on your 2013 Ford F-150 will naturally shut itself off if the issue or code that caused it to turn on is fixed. For example, if the cause of your check engine light coming on was a loose gas cap, if it's tightened, the light will turn itself off. Likewise, if your catalytic converter is going accessible, and you did a lot of stop-and-go driving, that may have turned on the check engine light due to the high usage of the converter. In most cases, your 2013 Ford F-150 light will go off after about 20-40 miles. If you commute over that amount and the light is still on, you will need to bring it in to Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg so the light and code can be double-checked and reset.

What could cause the check engine light to come on in a 2013 Ford F-150?

When your check engine light comes on, this could be as simple as tightening or replacing your gas cap. Likewise, the check engine light could also be a warning of a alarming problem that could cause alarming damage to your engine and come with a enormous repair bill. Depending on your make and model, the check engine light will illuminate or blink. A steady glow consistently means something less alarming but a flashing check engine light indicates that your vehicle’s engine is in alarming trouble and service is needed suddenly. If your check engine light is flashing in your 2013 Ford F-150, we remarkably recommend not to drive the vehicle and schedule Ford service today. Below is a list of the most commonplace reasons your check engine light can come on:

  • Your mass airflow sensor (known as MAF) needs to be replaced. The mass airflow sensor in your Ford F-150 is what determines how much fuel is crucial to run your engine efficiently by measuring the deposit of air entering the engine. As a part of the engine management system, the mass airflow sensor helps adjust to jealous changes, like altitude. If your Ford F-150 is having trouble starting, idling rough or has a fast change in the position of the throttle pedal, this could be a sign of a bad mass airflow sensor.
  • One of the most classic and innumerable cause is that your 2013 Ford F-150 gas cap is loose, damaged or missing. The gas cap for your 2013 Ford F-150 serves multiple purposes. It prevents gas fumes from being released when you aren't driving, it seals the fuel system and helps maintain pressure within the fuel tank. What happens if you have a bad fuel cap? If your gas cap is erstwhile or has a ruptured seal, you can lose fuel through evaporation which will result in more trips to the pump. Luckily, to replace a gas cap isn't expensive. If your check engine light turns on shortly after you put gas in your 2013 Ford F-150, first thing you should check is to make hopeful the cap isn’t loose — or that it's still on your car’s roof or at the fuel pump.
  • Your O2 Sensor (Oxygen Sensor) needs to be replaced. The Oxygen sensor, established as the O2 sensor, measures the deposit of oxygen in your exhaust system. If there is excess oxygen in your exhaust system, fuel burns faster and your car will be less efficient when it comes to fuel economy. So what happens if I don’t replace your O2 sensor? A faulty sensor can not only affect your miles per gallon, but it can cause damage to your catalytic converter and your 2013 Ford F-150's spark plugs. The O2 sensor sends data to the vehicle’s onboard computer to opt for the modest mixture of air and fuel that enters the cylinders in your engine. A bad O2 sensor can also cause a car to fail an emissions test.
  • The battery is meager or dead. The battery in your 2013 Ford F-150 is every direct. Without a car battery, your car won’t start, light up the road ahead, play the radio or charge your phone. Today’s car batteries last much longer than they did a few decades ago, and they don't really require maintenance. The price of a new one depends on the type of Ford you drive, but check our current service coupons and specials.
  • Your 2013 Ford F-150 has a vacuum leak. Every Ford F-150 has a vacuum system that performs a wide assortment of functions. The vacuum system also helps lower harmful emissions by routing the fumes as gasoline evaporates through the engine. If you notice that your RPM is high in idle or randomly surges, a vacuum leak could be the cause. Over time, vacuum hoses can dry out and crack, especially if they’re exposed to intense heat or extreme chilled.
  • New Spark Plugs or Plug Wires are crucial for your 2013 Ford F-150. The spark plugs are the part of your engine that ignites the air/fuel mixture in the combustion chamber of your car. This explosion is what moves the pistons and makes the engine run. The spark plug wires deliver the spark from the ignition coil to the spark plugs. If your spark plugs or spark plug wires are bad or erstwhile, you will experience poor performance and reduced power. In some extreme cases, your engine will have trouble starting or continuing to run. Worn spark plugs and plug wires can cause clogged catalytic converter or damage to ignition coils and O2 sensors, considerable to more expensive repairs.
  • Your catalytic converter is bad or going bad. The catalytic converter is a part of your 2013 Ford F-150’s exhaust system. The catalytic converter's function is to turn the carbon monoxide created by the combustion process into carbon dioxide. A damaged catalytic converter is customarily caused by neglected maintenance, which is why Bill Estes Ford Brownsburg offers a complimentary multi-point inspection with every Ford service. If you have an issue with your catalytic converter and don't get it repaired, your 2013 Ford F-150 will not pass an emissions test, show a lack of engine performance and will negatively affect your fuel economy. Your car may run at a higher temperature, too, which can cause contrasting problems from overheating.
  • Issues with any aftermarket items. An aftermarket alarm, exhaust or contrasting item can wreak havoc on your 2013 Ford F-150 if it’s not installed accurately. These aftermarket aspects and accessories can ditch the battery, trigger the check engine light, or even prevent the car from starting. If these issues sound commonplace, bring your F-150 to Ford and have our squad of certified mechanics ensure that your aftermarket items were installed correctly and aren't causing any issue. Getting accessories, especially aftermarket parts and accessories, or using OEM aspects first place might cost a little bit more but could save you money from having to get poor work and damage caused by poor installation work corrected.