Hybrid and EV Warning Lights a New Owner Won’t Know
Most unfamiliar lamps on a hybrid or EV dashboard are status indicators, not faults. Which ones are warnings, which are normal, and where the safety line is.
Most unfamiliar lamps on a hybrid or EV dashboard are status indicators, not faults. Which ones are warnings, which are normal, and where the safety line is.
Your symbol is not in the chart. Decode it instead: color, shape family, steady or flashing, then get your real manual free from the manufacturer.
A fault code names a circuit and a condition, not a broken part. Why the component in the code text is usually the one reporting the problem, not causing it.
Major auto parts chains read check engine codes free on 1996-and-newer cars. Here is what the scan covers, what it misses, and what a code cannot settle.
A triangle with an exclamation mark is the master warning light, a pointer to a message on your display. Here is how to tell it from the other two.
A light that clears itself does not mean the fault cleared itself. What it means depends on which light it was, and the code is usually still stored.
A flashing traction control light means the system is working. One that stays on means it switched itself off. Here is the difference and what to check.
The red temperature light is a stop-the-engine warning. Here is the order to do things in, what to do if you cannot pull over yet, and what not to touch.
Red brake light and amber ABS light are two different warnings. Here is how to tell them apart, what to check first, and which one means stop the car.
ABS light alone still means normal brakes work, just not anti-lock assist. ABS plus the red brake light together is a different, more urgent situation.