Free-to-me 2007 Ford Taurus check engine light.

[ANewSawyer]

So someone gave me a 2007 Ford Taurus and I was taking it to a mechanic to have the tires changed when the check engine light came on. I had them scan it and they said it was a Bank 1 something or another code. Oxygen sensor or cat code but I didn't get the actual code and will have to try to get the actual code from autozone or the like. My mechanic said not to worry about it but I don't think the check engine light will go off by itself. I want it to go off and think that maybe I can fix it myself. Can anybody point me in the direction of a good car forum that, like this forum, will be kind to a novice mechanic?

 

[backhoelover]

auto zones doestn give obd codes. the plug it to your car and to there computer and then it tell you what parts could cause that problem its bs

 

[backhoelover]

buy a small code reader off ebay i use the hell out of mine. just need a simple one dont need anything with freeze fame data etc unless you know how to read the data

 

[backhoelover]

make sure it does abs too

 

[backhoelover]

bank one is on the ex manifold. bank 2 does the cat but dont hold me to it been a while since automotive college lol

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

No. Bank 1 is cylinders 1,3,5. Bank 2 is 2, 4, and 6.

 

[Gugi47]

So someone gave me a 2007 Ford Taurus and I was taking it to a mechanic to have the tires changed when the check engine light came on. I had them scan it and they said it was a Bank 1 something or another code. Oxygen sensor or cat code but I didn't get the actual code and will have to try to get the actual code from autozone or the like. My mechanic said not to worry about it but I don't think the check engine light will go off by itself. I want it to go off and think that maybe I can fix it myself. Can anybody point me in the direction of a good car forum that, like this forum, will be kind to a novice mechanic?

Check all your Spats Plugs wires if are all connected right.
Do you ever replace the Spart Plugs on that car? If not, do it. After that take the Negative side off your battery for 5 minutes. Or remove the EFI fuse for 5 minutes.
Good luck.

 

[tomsteve]

best forum for taurii

http://www.taurusclub.com/forum/

to reset the CEL, disconnect the battery for at least minutes.

 

[ANewSawyer]

auto zones doestn give obd codes. the plug it to your car and to there computer and then it tell you what parts could cause that problem its bs

OK, it said I need the two sensors and the cat. I just don't want the cat to get plugged and kill the engine.

buy a small code reader off ebay i use the hell out of mine. just need a simple one dont need anything with freeze fame data etc unless you know how to read the data

I was thinking of getting one of the blue tooth dongles that plugs into the OBDII port and an app for my android tablet.

 

[ANewSawyer]

Took it back to autozone to get the sparkplugs and they actually gave me a code: P0420. "Catalyst sysmtem efficiency bank 1 below threshold".

I am doing some reading and I see that a misfire can destroy the cat internally. Potentially, I would assume that could block the cat. The car had a misfire that I thought was old gas, the mechanic shop said it was a coil pack or distributor cap. (Sorry, I don't know what it is called.) I see a exhaust back pressure sensor but that is a little out of my price range at $130 for a one use tool. I would rather put that toward a OBDII scan tool that would let me see the real time data values for the oxygen sensors.

 

[backhoelover]

https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/ford,2007,taurus,3.0l+v6,1433387,exhaust+&+emission

 

[backhoelover]

This isn't where I got parts for my wife's taurus

 

[buzz sawyer]

Ah, the wonderful world of computer codes and diagnostics. Trouble with codes is they only show what systems are giving non-standard readings, they don't tell you what part is bad and replacing parts to see if that fixes it can be really expensive. That's where a trained technician comes in and earns their paycheck. As for oxygen sensors, remember, it's senses oxygen in the exhaust, not rich or lean mixture. When you have a misfire, the oxygen in the cylinder is not consumed, resulting in higher oxygen levels in the exhaust - which could cause false lean mixture. I once had a case where the sensor was giving a false lean reading and causing an overly rich mixture. Root cause was voltage bleed from an adjacent computer terminal in the plastic harness plug.

 

[ANewSawyer]

I also saw this: http://www.ebay.com/itm/PE49472-FRO...=item4194bdb5b9:g:-mEAAOSwT6pVmbEV&rmvSB=true

Probably incredibly cheap inside but the price is right, lol!

I think I am going to order a cheap scanner that does live data: http://www.ebay.com/itm/EOBD-OBD2-O...a-Code-Reader-Check-Engine-/131157523057#rwid