A car is one of the most convenient modes of transportation for the majority of the population. This is why it is so important that we diagnose and check our engines for any faults or malfunctions.
In the abstract below, you will get to know the relevant information regarding a bad fuse of a car.
Can a bad fuse cause check engine light?
The check engine light turns on whenever the car’s electrical system is not working. The car’s electrical system depends on the fuse – without it, many electricity-dependent components will not work. In that case, a bad fuse can trigger the check engine lights to light up.
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A fuse is an electronic safety component that ensures the proper flow of current through the electronic components of the car. The fuse is also connected to the check engine light and is enclosed in a small box which is located beneath the dashboard on the lower-left corner.
The fuse box consists of two fuses of a 10mm rating and the fuse box has a “Room/Plafon” labeled on it.
On the other hand, the check engine light is also a safety mechanism just like the fuse which is used to indicate if the engine is facing any issues or malfunctions.
Typically the check engine light appears if the oxygen sensor is faulty which ends up causing the engine to be under a lot of stress due to inefficient combustion.
However, the check engine light can also be triggered by other issues occurring in any part of your vehicle such as loose gas caps – which isn’t a critical issue, which is why the range of reasons for the check engine light to be active is numerous.
One of the reasons for triggering the check engine light could be when your car’s electrical system is cut off – which could be due to faulty batteries, a lifeless battery, or a blown fuse.
And the fuse is one key component that ensures proper electricity flow, but if it were to go bad – then all components that depend on electricity will stop working such as the headlight bulb won’t light up, the internal lighting of the car won’t activate and the windows won’t move.
Can you drive with a blown fuse?
A fuse is made to protect electronic components as electricity of a safe range passes through it. Without it, none of the electronic components of the car could function – that includes the internal lights, headlights, windows, and many more.
Although these are necessary and useful components, you can still drive with a blown fuse.
However, that is valid only if you are driving during the daytime with sufficient light from the sun or other sources since you won’t have the need to use lights. But it gets very dangerous and risky to drive at night without any headlights or internal lights.
Therefore, you can drive with a blown fuse only during the daytime.
What happens if you have a bad fuse in your car?
Having a bad fuse won’t only cause a check engine light but also give rise to other issues in your car. The list of issues that might arise are described down below:
Headlights won’t activate:
The fuse is responsible for allowing electricity to pass through so that the electronic components inside the car can function properly.
The headlights of the car are dependent on electricity as a power source, and if the fuse in your car is bad – the headlights will refuse to turn on.
This is a serious issue since having no lights from headlights will make it enormously dangerous and even illegal to drive at night.
Internal lights won’t work:
Similar to headlights, the internal electronic components of the car are also dependent on the electricity source of the car but that gets obstructed if the fuse is bad.
The stereo system, monitor, or another internal lighting of the car won’t turn on at all if you have a bad fuse.
It is doable to drive without the stereo or monitor in most cases, but the internal lighting that lights up the speed meter, gas level, and buttons are crucial components for safe driving.
Windows cannot be panned up or down:
Windows of cars are also another component that doesn’t seem much important until it stops functioning. It allows us to efficiently control airflow between the outside and the car’s interior – however, this mechanism relies on electricity to function.
If the car has a bad fuse, the windows won’t move as the buttons have no power.
How to check car fuses and relays?
If you have bad fuses and relays, most electronic components of your car won’t function. In such cases, you need to make sure whether your car has bad fuses or relays – to do so, you can use the following methods:
Replace the relay with a working one:
If you suspect that a relay has gone bad, you can use a working spare relay and replace the old one. Afterward, check if the lights work – if they do, then the old relay was bad.
Interchange the relays of same port number:
In case you don’t have a spare relay, you could interchange the relays in the box that have the same number imprinted on them. After interchanging, if you notice the lights turn on, then you have identified the bad relay.
How to fix a blown fuse in a car?
The detailed steps for fixing a car’s blown fuse has been described below:
Find the car’s fuse panel and open it:
Usually, the car’s fuse panel is located under the steering wheel, the engine compartment, or the trunk – but that depends on the car model so you should check all these locations.
After you find the fuse panel, you need to open it to find a number of fuses/relays inside with different colors and numbers labeled in them.
Each of the fusees of different colors and numbers represents different amperage ratings and are assigned to different electronic components of the car. You can find details regarding the fuses and their connected components in the fuse panel’s cover.
Remove the blown fuse:
You can easily identify the blown fuse by flashing a flashlight on the fuses, the one with a broken metal filament is the blown fuse. After identification, you can either use your bare hands to pull out the fuse or use other tools to pull it out.
Install the replacement fuse:
Once you remove the old fuse, take note of the number and color of the fuse to make sure you don’t install a fuse of the wrong amperage.
You have the option to either buy and install a new fuse to replace the old one or use another fuse of the same color and number which is connected to a lesser-used electronic component.
Is there a fuse for check engine light?
The check engine light can be caused by a bad fuse but there is no fuse for the check engine light. The check engine light gets activated if there is an issue somewhere in the car or the engine.
Bad fuses cause the electronic components of the car to stop working which the check engine light identifies as a critical issue.
The check engine light doesn’t have a fuse in it and it should light up during the ignition sequence. Having it deliberately be turned off can be dangerous as you will be unaware of any issues in the car.
Which fuse controls the check engine light?
As mentioned in the previous section, the check engine light doesn’t have a separate fuse controlling it. This is why if you see the check engine lights are on, it means that there are some issues in your car.
How to reset check engine light by pulling fuse?
Before you read the steps to reset the check engine light, you should note that this procedure mostly works on older cars. Regardless, the steps to reset the check engine light are:
Open the fuse panel:
Open the fuse panel located under the steering wheel, the engine compartment, or the trunk to reveal the fuses.
Unplug the fuses one by one:
Unplug the fuses in the panel one by one but remember their original slots.
Plug the fuses back in:
Once you unplugged all the fuses, plug them back into their original slots one by one.
Check the engine lights:
After plugging them firmly, close the panel and then start the car to check whether the engine light has been reset.
Final thoughts
When the car’s electrical system fails, the check engine light activates. The fuse is essential to the car’s electrical system; without it, numerous components that rely on electricity will not operate. In this situation, a blown fuse may cause the check engine light to activate.