Q: Limp mode

asked by on January 11, 2017

Sometimes when I'm driving, my car will suddenly go into limp mode. The check engine light, the airbag light, and a tire pressure light will come on.(the airbag light stays on). I can sometimes pull over, turn the car off for a few minutes, and then it will drive fine. Also, when I press the gas, it feels like it is slow to accelerate, and when shifting into drive or reverse, it feels like the car jerks a little bit.. Thanks for any help you can give.

My car has 188000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.

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Hello, thank you for writing in. The Limp Mode is activated as a safety precaution due to the computer detecting an issue that will potentially cause further damage. There are a wide variety of sensors that are inputs for the safety mode. Therefore there are a wide variety of systems we would need to look into in order to figure out which one is causing these issues. The easiest way to do this, is to let the computer tell you itself. This can be done when those check engine and warning lights come on. Regardless if anything is actually wrong, a sensor is freaking out the computer for one reason or another. When those warning lights illuminate, take the car to have it scanned for diagnostic troubleshooting codes. These will tell you exactly what the computer is detecting, and give you insight on what you will need to do to resolve the issue. For more help with this procedure, contact our service department to schedule an appointment.

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