Check Engine Soon light - long drive ahead, help!

blondieesd · Aug 6th, 2009, 01:17 AM

Hey everyone, I'm new here and hoping you guys can set my mind at ease... I just drove my car (2009 Nissan Versa) from San Diego to San Francisco, about 500 miles. At about 400 miles the check engine soon light came on (this was probably about 50 miles after I stopped for gas). I stopped at a gas station, checked the tire pressure, gas cap, and oil level, it was all normal. The car doesn't feel off at all, feels just fine.

What could have caused the light to come on? Should I be worried about breaking down on the highway? I'm scheduled to drive back out to san diego early tomorrow morning and don't really have time to find a nissan service station and have it checked out. My brother thinks it's probably some minor sensor problem and I should be okay to drive back. Anyone else have this problem? Should I definitely have it checked out before hitting the road again? I've got an 8-10 hour drive ahead of me and I'm scared of breaking down. Thanks for your advice, sorry if I sound like a total newbie..

PbLead · Aug 8th, 2009, 07:15 PM

It's either the cap, or the other likely issue is the air/fuel ratio sensor, which sets a P2A00. If that's the case, take it to the dealer. There is a bulletin for that problem, but I just got word that the bulletin is about to be updated. If your dealer isn't currently aware of it, Nissan is saying to replace the rear O2 sensor as well. But there are a few other problems it could be. Those are the 2 largest ones.

Helliotrope · Aug 18th, 2009, 07:51 PM

I just had the same issue over the weekend with my 09 Versa with only 14,000 miles on it. After a long drive to Los Angeles and back the SES light came on and stayed on. I double checked the gas cap, made sure it was on snugly and after a few trips over the next couple of days it stayed on. The car ran perfectly fine. I took it into the dealership and they could find nothing wrong with it. They said it registered an evaporative leak code which was likely caused by the gas cap not being on tight enough--even though it was.

Did you ever hear anything about your issue? Did it go away?