Check Power Train Warning Light

[leggarna]

I have a 2000 VT V8 6 speed manual. My check powertrain light came on today. It appears to be running fine, not overheating, oil and water all good. I know that the manual says to take to holden to do a diagnostic but I can afford it at the moment. My hubby usually deals with the maintenance on my car but he is away at the moment. I have a bit of knowledge regarding motors. Can anyone make any suggestions what to check. Can I drive it.

 

[accentstencil]

When the check engine light comes on a fault or error codes is logged.
If it is the 5 litre V8 you can read the fault codes by following the instructions in the link: https://forums.justcommodores.com.au/threads/checking-error-codes-vt-vx.23665
If it is the 5.7 litre V8 this will not work and you will need a compatible scantool to read the codes.

 

[leggarna]

Thanks, unfortunately mine is the 5.7

 

[accentstencil]

Has the light stayed on or did it turn off again. If it has turned off then it was probably an intermittent fault and may or may not return.
If the light is constantly on then you are better off get it scanned to see what set it off, rather that guessing what the problem is and wasting money on parts. There are so many things that can trigger the check engine light.

 

[leggarna]

Light Still On

Has the light stayed on or did it turn off again. If it has turned off then it was probably an intermittent fault and may or may not return.
If the light is constantly on then you are better off get it scanned to see what set it off, rather that guessing what the problem is and wasting money on parts. There are so many things that can trigger the check engine light.

Yeah the light is still on. I stopped the car checked everything. Restarted and it was still on. I drove home about 10kms. Do you know approx. how much it will cost me to have it scanned.

 

[accentstencil]

Prices vary a lot, some might charge as little as $20, others might charge $80 or more.
I suggest you ring a few mechanics and auto electricians and ask them how much to scan for fault codes.
Holden dealers tend to charge a lot.

 

[WHCapriceHBD]

My Holden dealer charges $20 to scan a 5.7 V8 for faults.

I just spent the 60 bucks on a very simply diagnostic tool online. (Within 3 uses it should pay for itself in savings)

You will never know what is wrong if you don't scan the car- spending 20 or 60 bucks to figure out the problem is better than throwing hundreds of dollars at it in random parts, hoping they will fix the problem. In the long run, its easier on your wallet to scan it the first time.

 

[accentstencil]

My Holden dealer charges $20 to scan a 5.7 V8 for faults.

I just spent the 60 bucks on a very simply diagnostic tool online. (Within 3 uses it should pay for itself in savings)

You will never know what is wrong if you don't scan the car- spending 20 or 60 bucks to figure out the problem is better than throwing hundreds of dollars at it in random parts, hoping they will fix the problem. In the long run, its easier on your wallet to scan it the first time.

What did you get?
I have purchased 1 scan tool and two OBD2 interfaces, using about four different apps and none of them read fault codes. They all read live data though.

 

[chriso-k]

Bring it to me and I'll scan it for free. Only problem, I'm in Sydney. I don't think your issue is likely to be anything major. Otherwise you'd notice performance issues. But no way of knowing for sure until looked into further