'03 Mountaineer V8 SERVICE ENGINE SOON light

The SERVICE ENGINE SOON light came on today on my '03 Mountaineer Premier
AWD V8 with 47K miles. The book says it's related to emissions. Oxygen
sensor?????

What do you guys think is wrong and what is a fair repair cost? Also, I need
to drive to Cleveland on Tuesday (about a 270 mles round trip)...can I drive
it with the light on and get it fixed later in the week?

You can drive coast to coast with your CEL on, or break down on the way to
the neighborhood grocery store, because there are at least 500 ways things
can go wrong.
Most likely it's indeed, related to emissions. Simply because just about any
misbehavior of your engine will cause increased emissions. Your user manual
probably mentions checking that the gas cap is tight (some models have an
indicator light just for that, not sure about yours). If you found it loose,
tighten it, and if that's what caused the CEL to turn on, it will be off on
its own in a few days of driving. If you are in a hurry, you can disconnect
the battery for a few minutes, which will turn the CEL off (and wipe the
diagnostic codes from the computer as well...). If the problem persists, it
will be on again.
I usually advise people to have the codes pulled and post them here, to seek
guidance in doing their own troubleshooting. But seems that you are not
mechanically inclined, so it won't matter much. If your gas cap is not
loose, go to a professional. That's about all I would offer.

Good Luck


"D.D. Pallmer" > wrote in message
...
> The SERVICE ENGINE SOON light came on today on my '03 Mountaineer Premier
> AWD V8 with 47K miles. The book says it's related to emissions. Oxygen
> sensor?????

Thanks for the suggestion. I disconnected the battery and reset the
computer. And after 500 miles, the light STILL has not come back on!
Interestingly my wife bot gas last week (just before the light came on)
which she rarely does. So perhaps she did not tighten the gas cap and this
was the cause of the (now reset) light. Thanks again for the suggestion.


"Happy Traveler" > wrote in message
...
> You can drive coast to coast with your CEL on, or break down on the way to
> the neighborhood grocery store, because there are at least 500 ways things
> can go wrong.
> Most likely it's indeed, related to emissions. Simply because just about
> any
> misbehavior of your engine will cause increased emissions. Your user
> manual
> probably mentions checking that the gas cap is tight (some models have an
> indicator light just for that, not sure about yours). If you found it
> loose,
> tighten it, and if that's what caused the CEL to turn on, it will be off
> on
> its own in a few days of driving. If you are in a hurry, you can
> disconnect
> the battery for a few minutes, which will turn the CEL off (and wipe the
> diagnostic codes from the computer as well...). If the problem persists,
> it
> will be on again.
> I usually advise people to have the codes pulled and post them here, to
> seek
> guidance in doing their own troubleshooting. But seems that you are not
> mechanically inclined, so it won't matter much. If your gas cap is not
> loose, go to a professional. That's about all I would offer.
>
> Good Luck
>
>
> "D.D. Pallmer" > wrote in message
> ...
>> The SERVICE ENGINE SOON light came on today on my '03 Mountaineer Premier
>> AWD V8 with 47K miles. The book says it's related to emissions. Oxygen
>> sensor?????
>
>