Surprises when driving aren’t typically welcome: a loud bang under the bonnet, a wheel coming off, or a dreaded dashboard light flashing up.
What does that illuminated dash symbol mean? How serious is it?
And should I stop immediately or soldier on with fingers crossed?
The lights on the dash are the car’s only way of communicating there’s an issue of some sort, and they are colour coded to help you.
MORE: Aussie buys world’s fastest car
Like a traffic light, green is OK, yellow or orange is commonly used for warnings of a minor problem and red means pull over as soon as it’s safe and turn off the engine.
If you don’t recognise the symbol, seek a translation in the owner’s manual.
It will also inform what the next step is: best case it’s a simple fix, worst case it’s a tow truck.
The light most drivers fear is the “check engine” one; an orange symbol showing an engine in
profile. It’s an uh-oh moment, but don’t panic.
It could be simple rather than calamitous. This light covers anything from a loose petrol cap right up to major failures.
MORE: What to do when your car warranty expires
If it’s a solid light, pull over, switch off, check the fuel filler cap’s secure and look under the bonnet for any obvious issue.
If things appear clear, restart the car and hopefully the “check engine” light doesn’t illuminate.
If it does, carefully drive to your destination and have your car inspected at the earliest opportunity.
Good workshops use a special diagnostic tool to pinpoint exactly the issue, and what’s needed to remedy it.
If the “check engine” light’s flashing it’s a more urgent issue. Pull over immediately and call for breakdown or recovery assistance.
MORE: How to choose between petrol, hybrid and electric power
Other dash lights requiring an immediate stop include oil pressure warning – a dripping oil can symbol which will be red for stop as soon as it is safe to do so – and engine/coolant temperature warning – a thermometer-shaped symbol.
The former usually means you’re low on oil which means your engine has no oil pressure, in which case you can now measure your engine remaining life in seconds.
Low coolant levels and high engine temperature means you must pull over and switch off.
Never remove the radiator or expansion tank cap in such circumstances or severe burns may
result. Let it cool for an hour, and seek expert assistance.
While the above dash lights have existed for decades, a common warning on newer cars is the tyre pressure monitoring system – the symbol is an exclamation mark in a deflating tyre.
It’ll illuminate even if the tyre’s only lost a few psi.
Pull over, and if there’s no tyre damage or it’s not noticeably flat, drive to a servo at a reduced speed to check pressures.
Ever noticed an orange swerving car symbol? If temporarily flashing it’s alerting the traction control system has been activated, preventing the car from skidding or its wheels spinning due to loss of grip.
There are dozens of other dash warning lights in, including in the latest cars’ digital driver displays.
Many are obvious symbols and easy to remedy: windscreen washer fluid low, key fob battery low, dirty air filter or simply that the boot’s open.
In other cases, it helps to go to an auto professional for diagnosis.
They’ll be able to quickly pinpoint problems using an electronic tool communicating with your car’s many computers and sensors.
This story was produced in partnership with VACC.
