My check engine ( CEL) has never worked. I assumed it was the bulb.Where I live I do not have to pass any tests so I just forgot about it.I had the dash apart working on the radio and went ahead and pulled out the cluster and replaced several bulbs that were blown.I had the battery disconnected doing all this.I got everything all back together and hooked battery back up and turned the key on and CEL worked fine started truck and light went out. Problem solved ??? Do I need to do a relearn to make sure,,,will it relearn on it's on.I have not driven it yet,,was just wondering what I should do next if anything !!!!

 

Ok I got to update this a little.Drove my truck to the store about a mile and a half away.When I was backing out I heard 5 beeps and a pause...5 more beeps and a pause,,I think 25 beeps in all and it stopped beeping. Went into store got my items and on return trip it did the same thing,,,5 beeps a pause,,,5 beeps and a pause I think 25 beeps total again,,,what did I do wrong ?????? ANYONE ????? Good news is CEL seemed to work fine !!!

 

Ok got it figured out.The beep code is to tell me the airbag bulb is bad.I stole the airbag bulb and put it in the CEL because I did not have the bulb. So now CEL is fine but beep because of the airbag bulb is very noisy. So now I have to get the bulb and take the whole thing out again to stop the beeping. Do not make my mistake,,,do not steal the airbag bulb to fix the CEL !!!!!!! A simple bulb change has turned into a PITA job because I did not have a spare bulb. I guess you live and learn,,,or at least I did this time LOL. Will not make this mistake again !!!!! Will keep extra bulbs in the glove box for now on !!!! I am still wondering if I need to do anything else about a relearn on the CEL bulb replacement. Seems to be working well now,,,but I did have the battery disconnected for a hour or so. I guess a long test drive to see if CEL stays off .

 

spooktn what are we gonna do with you!!! I suppose just let Murphy's Law have its way with yah, it seems to be doing a good job. lol

 

Disconnecting the battery wipes the KAM= Keep Alive Memory, so fuel trim tables get wiped, along with the cold & warm idle strategy & any stored trouble codes, so if your having any drive ability problems, perform the cold & warm idle relearn routine & if your about to have a State inspection done, perform the Ford IM reset drive cycle before taking it in.
If no inspection is due & no drive ability problems, just drive it a combo of city & highway & all will eventually reset over time.

 

I am used to working on old school cars and trucks ( last car was 65 chevy that i could work on that just wore out and was not worth fixing anymore),,,did not know anything about fuel injection computers or flash and beep codes,,,kind learning the hard way and yes Murphy's law is being a PITA,,,but thanks to this site and all the members I got my old Ranger purring like a kitten( except for the darn beeping),,,I hope I have a good handle on everything now,,,but may pop in anytime with a new head scratcher LOL,,,Thanks to you and all the other members for all your help !!!!!

 

No inspections are done here in this little town,,,no drive or run ability problems,,, so as you stated I am just going to drive a combo of city and road miles and let it reset over time,,,,soon as I get ride of that darn beeping LOL

 

Don't let the newer computer controlled systems intimidate you, just accept them as they are & learn how they work, it's not too bad. It worried me at first too, but just hang in there & persevere & you'll likely do fine learning to trouble shoot problems.

Think of the computer as the brain, the sensors as it's nerves, the actuators as it's fingers doing things the computer instructs them to do & the wiring & linkages that inter connects all of them, as connections to make em all work.

Think of the trouble codes the computer can offer up, as it's language clues to what it thinks hurts. So having a scan tool to read the codes, or sense what info the sensors are sending the computer & what the computer is telling the actuators to do, as a result of the sensor inputs, can have us be able to trouble shoot in real time what's wrong, so can help a trouble shoot of corrupt sensor input, or resulting faulty computer actuator control, or faulty actuator actions, to be under stood really fast & thus make a trouble shoot Way more accurate.

There are some really good inexpensive scan tools & computer diagnostic software that can be used on various viewing devices of our choice to help us trouble shoot problems in real time as the engine runs, or as the vehicle is being driven. Lots of internet info on how to interpret what our scan tools are telling us, so the learning curve hasn't been too painful for an oldy moldy like me.

 

On the passenger air bag beep thing, use the ignition key to turn it off & maybe it'll stop beeping until you get it's lamp replaced.