2014 VW GTI Check Engine Light

Check Engine Light Service 2014 VW GTI

What do you do when you’re driving along in your VW GTI and rapidly, a yellow light illuminates on your dash and says "Check Engine". If you’re like most VW owners, your heart sinks a little because you have little 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 2014 VW GTI checked as soon as possible. Ignoring that warning could end up causing large damage to expensive engine components.

When your 2014 VW GTI's ECM (electronic control module), which is the vehicle's onboard computer, finds a problem in the electronic control system that it can’t correct, a computer turns on your check engine light. This amber or yellow light is typically 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 read with an electronic audit tool that is used by our VW auto repair mechanics at Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta. There are also a number of relatively fair 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 skilled licensed to indicate the issue and repair it.

2014 VW GTI Check Engine Light

A flashing light indicates that the problem is perilous and if not taken care of hastily may result in substantial damage to the vehicle. If the check engine light in your 2014 VW GTI starts flashing, that means that the problem needs abrupt attention and your VW should be brought in hastily. This flashing light ordinarily indicates a exacting engine misfire allowing unburned fuel to be dumped into the exhaust system. There it can quickly boost the temperature of the catalytic converter to a point where damage is conceivable, requiring an expensive repair. Some owners ask if spark plugs cause the check engine light to flash? This can genuinely be the cause. A bad, departed or dirty spark plug can cause the engine to misfire. If your check engine light is flashing, please contact our squad of automotive veterans at Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta hastily by calling 7706299081. 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 expensive repair.

What could cause the check engine light to come on in a 2014 VW GTI?

When your check engine light comes on, this could be as authentic as tightening or replacing your gas cap. Likewise, the check engine light could also be a warning of a relentless problem that could cause relentless damage to your engine and come with a immense repair bill. Depending on your make and model, the check engine light will illuminate or blink. A steady glow typically means something less relentless but a shining check engine light indicates that your vehicle’s engine is in relentless trouble and service is crucial quickly. If your check engine light is shining in your 2014 VW GTI, we particularly recommend not to travel to work the vehicle and schedule VW service at this moment. Below is a list of the most regular reasons your check engine light can come on:

• Issues with any aftermarket items. An aftermarket alarm, exhaust or alternative item can wreak havoc on your 2014 VW GTI if it’s not installed properly. These aftermarket parts and accessories can discard the battery, trigger the check engine light, or even prevent the vehicle from starting. If these issues sound attentive, bring your GTI to VW and have our company of certified technicians ensure that your aftermarket items were installed correctly and aren't causing any issue. Getting accessories, especially aftermarket parts and accessories, or using OEM parts original 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.
• Your 2014 VW GTI has a vacuum leak. Every VW GTI has a vacuum system that performs a wide variety of functions. The vacuum system also helps lessen 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 exciting heat or extreme cool.
• Your mass airflow sensor (known as MAF) needs to be replaced. The mass airflow sensor in your VW GTI is what determines how much fuel is basic to run your engine efficiently by measuring the sum of air entering the engine. As a part of the engine management system, the mass airflow sensor helps adjust to coherent changes, like altitude. If your VW GTI is having trouble starting, idling rough or has a abrupt change in the position of the throttle pedal, this could be a sign of a damaging mass airflow sensor.
• The battery is low or dead. The battery in your 2014 VW GTI is every crucial. 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 VW you drive, but check our common service coupons and specials.
• Your O2 Sensor (Oxygen Sensor) needs to be replaced. The Oxygen sensor, common as the O2 sensor, measures the sum of oxygen in your exhaust system. If there is excess oxygen in your exhaust system, fuel burns faster and your vehicle will be less adequate 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 2014 VW GTI's spark plugs. The O2 sensor sends data to the vehicle’s onboard computer to find out the right variety of air and fuel that enters the cylinders in your engine. A damaging O2 sensor can also cause a car to fail an emissions test.
• New Spark Plugs or Plug Wires are basic for your 2014 VW GTI. The spark plugs are the part of your engine that ignites the air/fuel variety in the combustion chamber of your vehicle. 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 damaging or old, 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, finest to more expensive repairs.
• One of the most attentive and frequent cause is that your 2014 VW GTI gas cap is loose, damaged or missing. The gas cap for your 2014 VW GTI 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 damaging fuel cap? If your gas cap is old 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 immediately after you put gas in your 2014 VW GTI, original thing you should check is to make sure the cap isn’t loose — or that it's still on your car’s roof or at the fuel pump.
• Your catalytic converter is damaging or going damaging. The catalytic converter is a part of your 2014 VW GTI’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 ordinarily caused by neglected maintenance, which is why Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta offers a complimentary multi-point inspection with every VW service. If you have an issue with your catalytic converter and don't get it revamped, your 2014 VW GTI 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 alternative problems from overheating.

2014 VW GTI 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 right 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 acknowledged as the OBD (on-board computer diagnostic system) in your GTI. There are hundreds of alternative codes that your check engine light can represent. While that sounds daunting, with a little patience, tackling basic diagnostics will give you convenient knowledge about your vehicle and will also allow that Check Engine Light to do what it is really supposed to do: be your guide. Unfortunately, obvious and convenient vehicle symptoms do not always accompany an illuminated Check Engine Light. Since there are hundreds of accurate OBD codes, there are also hundreds of accurate reasons for the light, including:

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

This is why it is vital for someone who does not have a few of automotive knowledge to not assume what a code means. When your check engine light comes on, you should get it checked out quickly by a certified VW mechanic. If the engine light comes on due to a significant concern, you risk destructive your car further by not repairing the issue right away. Call Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta at 7706299081 today or schedule your check engine light service online today!

Is it safe to drive your 2014 VW GTI with the check engine light on?

If the check engine light is blinking, this means that there is a admissible issue and it is recommended to service your VW GTI quickly. This question is not excessively prevailing 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 dependable to drive. This is mostly indicated by a natural glow of the check engine light. If you notice a difference in the performance of the automobile, it could be an indication of a more admissible problem. Call the veterans at Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta by dialing 7706299081 so you can describe the issues. Or reduce your speed and bring your 2014 VW to our certified mechanics as soon as viable.

Will the check engine light reset itself?

The check engine light on your 2014 VW GTI will usually 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 functional, 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 2014 VW GTI light will go off after about 20-40 miles. If you drive over that amount and the light is still on, you will need to bring it in to Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta so the light and code can be double-checked and reset.

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

The check engine light warns of issues ranging from a gas cap that's not properly tightened to a more strict failure like a bad catalytic converter or a problem with one of the car's oxygen sensors, so it excellent to get the factual code reading and diagnosis. The average cost for a check engine light diagnosis & testing is generally between $88 and $111. The excellent news, Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta offers complimentary multi-point inspections and free diagnostics, in most cases, to help read the cause of your check engine light.

2014 VW GTI 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 copious classic causes incorporating something as logical as a loose gas cap. Alternative classic reasons for a Check Engine Light are faulty head gasket, faulty emissions control part, damaged oxygen sensor, a malfunction with the fuel injection system, dirty mass airflow sensor, or defective spark plugs to name bountiful. No matter what is the root cause of the Check Engine Light, we have the VW Certified Technicians and the certified service protocol to isolate the root problem and repair it as needed to restore factory specifications. When this happens, the Check Engine Light turns off, and you can leave the service center knowing that your VW issue was serviced.

Every 2014 VW GTI was designed with a high-technology performance monitoring system with a computer, and a series of sensors positioned strategically throughout the vehicle on its decisive systems. The sensors are continually 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 incorrect nor what to do about it. That’s where we come in; Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta provides a Check Engine Light Diagnosis Service that isolates the core problem and gives you a recommendation on what to do next from a Extremely Qualified Service expert.

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

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 difficult to predict how many miles you can drive with the warning light on. If you check engine light is flashing, we recommend that you pull over and contact Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta to help indicate if your vehicle is reliable to drive in or if we recommend a tow truck. It could be anything from a bad sensor to plug wires needing to be replaced.

What Does the Check Engine Light Mean?

One of the most commonly misunderstood lights or indicators in your 2014 VW GTI is the check engine light. The check engine light is part of the onboard diagnostics system, and displays in a few contrasting ways. It can say "Check Engine", it can be a symbol of an engine, it can even be a combination of both. This light illuminates 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 2014 VW GTI. Some of these include ignition timing, controlling engine speed, shifting automatic transmissions and implementing stability control, just to name numerous. With that being said, the check engine light can mean a variety of substitute things. It can be as simple as your gas cap being loose or as hazardous as engine knocking. If your check engine light is on in your 2014 VW GTI, contact Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta. Contact Nalley Volkswagen of Alpharetta today! Our VW service department can help you find out what code is turning your check engine light on or audit why your check engine light is flashing.