Never erase codes from a car.

Because then when a mechanic checks the codes, they might not show up thus they may not effectively repair your car.

Best to let the codes remain so a repair shop can know everything wrong w/your vehicle vs. only some of it.

Guess I had no reason to actually worry about the erased codes.

As soon as I turned the car on, the check engine light began blinking again immediately.

So yes - I did drive it to the shop (about 1.5 miles away) and thankfully the car made it there.

-OP

If it’s a significant issue the codes will come right back when the mechanic turns it on. But ideally your friend with the code reader wrote down the codes for you before erasing.

You don’t need proof it’s bad but they will help the mechanic understand what happened without doing things to make it worse.

OP Above ^^

Thx for all the excellent advice.

One more question....
Since the codes have been erased & I tell the mechanic that the check engine light was blinking, but turned off once I erased the codes, can the mechanic still get the codes if he uses his scanner?
Or does the check engine light have to actually be on to have my car scanned??

I feel by erasing the codes -
I have lost proof that my car is in bad shape since perhaps the codes won’t read until later.

Many codes are not important, can be erased, and you could continue driving just fine. In your case, get your car to a mechanic.

Anonymous wrote:My check engine light was blinking on and off last night and today I had someone scan the check engine codes with a scanner.
Turns out the crankshaft position has an issue plus I have cylinders misfiring.

The person with the scanner erased the codes so hopefully I can drive vs. tow my vehicle into the shop.

Does erasing the codes also let me drive the car a little more as well?

- - Clueless Female

No, erasing the codes do not make the problem go away.

Here is an analogy that you may be able to relate better to:

1) You receive a text message on your phone
2) The contents of the message say the pipes in your house have burst and there is water everywhere
3) You read the message and then close the messaging app
4) By reading and closing the messaging app and therefore removing the notification on the phone, does not mean that your water situation has been fixed. It just means that the notification is no longer new.

When your mechanic checked the codes on your car and erased the error codes, they simply closed out "the messaging app" on your car. If you continue to drive your car, you continue to do damage to your car and the check engine light will re-appear.

When it comes to your car, the earlier you deal with the problem, the better. The longer you wait, typically (not always), it gets more expensive.

Good luck!

Anonymous wrote:What is the relevance of “female”?

Because “Females” are typically clueless about cars.

If it is what you say DO NOT DRIVE IT! You will or could seriously damage the valves, cams, head, pistons and cylinders.

What is the relevance of “female”?

If the CEL is flashing, that is a signal that the car should not be driven. You could damage the engine, in this case.

Sold CEL light is safe to drive.

My check engine light was blinking on and off last night and today I had someone scan the check engine codes with a scanner.
Turns out the crankshaft position has an issue plus I have cylinders misfiring.

The person with the scanner erased the codes so hopefully I can drive vs. tow my vehicle into the shop.

Does erasing the codes also let me drive the car a little more as well?

- - Clueless Female