Imagine yourself driving peacefully on board your Chevrolet Malibu and all of a sudden an engine warning light appears on your dashboard ! The most common reaction is the worry of risking a serious issue. To know what exactly this light refers to, you will have to learn how to read an Chevrolet Malibu fault codes, you may have already heard about OBD system, this is precisely what we are going to focus on. Our editors have chosen to publish this content to help you quickly discover the source of this default code and to give you peace of mind. To do this, we will first look at the nature of a fault code on Chevrolet Malibu, then how to read an Chevrolet Malibu fault code, and finally how to erase this fault code in order to turn off the light on your dashboard.
What is a Chevrolet Malibu fault code?
A fault code is a generic or standard code which is identical to all manufacturers , they are also identified as DTC (Data Trouble Code), the goal is to make sure that any diagnostic OBD can read them. They will be represented by a standard format, like for example: P0255. Each data will have a special explanation. Default codes are codes issued by the calculators of your Chevrolet Malibu. These ECUs will continuously monitor your vehicle’s exhausts, pressures, mixtures and when the values exceed the limits set by the vehicle’s ECU, the fault code will emerge. The benefit of knowing how to read a fault code on your Chevrolet Malibu is that you will have access to complete statistics about your vehicle which will enable you to figure out what trouble you are standing in front of.
How to read a fault code on my Chevrolet Malibu?
In this second section we will now focus precisely on what brings you on this website, how to read a fault code on Chevrolet Malibu. To access this useful data you will need to to get a diagnostic tool, also called OBD 2, named after the socket on your Chevrolet Malibu to which you will have to connect. These diagnostic tools are easily available, you will be able to find some in Bluetooth version which connects to your phone and some standard versions with a reader associated to the socket, as far as price is concerned, you will be able to find models between 30 and 100 euros. Once you have purchased an OBD2 diagnostic reader, you will have to identify the diagnostic plug on your Chevrolet Malibu, it is established on the left side of your steering column on the lower part of your dashboard, behind a hatch. It is easy to locate because it is triangular shaped and has 16 pins. All you have to do is connect with your diagnostic tool to read the fault code of your Chevrolet Malibu.
How to erase the fault code Chevrolet Malibu
Finally, to conclude this content page, we are going to describe you the process to do to erase a fault code on your Chevrolet Malibu. Once you have navigated through the menus, you will access the list of active fault codes on your car. However, you will have to ask yourself an essential question, is it really beneficial to erase this fault code on Chevrolet Malibu? In fact, erasing a fault code without resolving the issue is like closing its eyes to the fact. In addition, the computer of your Chevrolet Malibu is made to take decisions according to the data it collects, if a crucial fault code is present, it will actually modify the engine comportment to protect it. So if you erase the fault code, be sure you resolve the problem to which it is associated. Some OBD diagnostic tools do not allow you to do this. You have a dedicated navigation menu on most diagnostic tools that should allow you to clear this fault code on Chevrolet Malibu.
If perhaps you have any additional questions about the Chevrolet Malibu, do not hesitate to consult our Chevrolet Malibu category.
