I'm hoping some one can help me out with this. My wife and I will be travelling to Pennsylvania for Christmas and then to Ottawa for New Years. My Service Engine Soon light came on during the week and had it checked at a local garage. They said that two errors came up, this is what was on my Invoice:

1)PO455 Evaporator system detected a large leak 2) PO1000 Unknown diagnostic trouble codes. We cleared the codes. If the light comes back, we will have to replace the Evaporator Solenoid.

The light came on yesterday again. My question is, I won't have time to get this fixed till I get to Ottawa, or till I return home after Jan 1. Would it be safe to drive around?

My car drives fine and nothing is wrong other than the SES light is on.

I'm going to call the dealership to see what they recommend, but thought I would get your opinion too.

Thanks in advance for your help,

Tauseef

 

Isn't that part of the A/C system?

 

Actually, I think that this will be related to the fuel system. Check number one: gas cap loose.

I don't believe ODBII monitors any HVAC activities, strictly emissions/fuel???

 

Yes, it is.

 

I should have added: are you noticing worse fuel mileage than usual?

Loose vac lines can also cause this. Actually, there was a fuel tank TSB that needed a part changed for some Gs, so maybe that TSB applies to your G? I can't recall what the exact details of it were, but I'm sure someone here would have a link to it.

This all said, easiest thing to check is the gas cap.

 

Here's a pdf that gives a general overview of the evap system:

http://www.autoshop101.com/forms/h62.pdf

 

Just adding another pdf, this one may be a bit more helpful:

http://www.motorage.com/motorage/art....jsp?id=169806

 

akrus, thanks for the links!

I did check my gas cap and that was okay. I haven't noticed the fuel mileage go down, but I haven't driven much this week. The tech told my wife when she took it in that the sensor is just acting up and may need to be changed.

My only concern was, would it be a problem to wait till I return to get this fixed.

Thanks again for your help, I'll look over the links.

As for the TSB, it won't be covered for me, I'm out of warranty.

 

I'm confident that you'll be ok with putting off the diagnosis/repair until you return from Pennsylvania.

If the car starts to run noticeably rough, then by all means get it looked at immediately, however if the light is on and everything seems fine, I wouldn't sweat it. When I had my last oil change, I had the pit monkey replace the air filter. in doing so, he didn't snap the MAF cable back in properly when reassembling. I went to start my car and the light came on immediately. The idle was rough and the car just didn't want to rev. I told him something was wrong and he claimed it was normal for a filter change (hint not to visit that shop again ) I told him it wasn't and insisted that we look at the engine compartment for an answer. I noticed that the cable wasn't inserted all the way. Once I corrected that, the car started fine and ran perfectly - BUT the check engine light was still on. It remained on for about 3 days of driving (mostly highway, about 400kms). Hasn't come back on.

Another time, when I had my Maxima, my check engine soon light came on while I was in Florida. i called my dealership and the tech told me not to worry unless it was obviously running out of the norm. I drove for about 1200 kms and a day and a half before the light went out and never returned.

Hope it all clears up for you without any problems. Enjoy your upcoming trip.

 

Thanks akrus, I appreciate all the help!

Happy Holidays!

 

I wanted to give you guys an update on the light. The Service Engine Light just disappeared as I was travelling into the States. Never came back either.

Thanks again for your help akrus and Happy New Year to all of you!

 

Great to hear that everything went fine.