yellow dashboard light (the light showing an engine)

Hi everyone,

I drive a Honda Prelude 1991.

Yesterday I was on the freeway when the yellow engine light went on. I
took the first exit and drove home at a slower speed. There were no
obvious symptoms, or noises. Once at home, I turned off the engine and
started the car, and the yellow light did not go on. What can be said
in this situation? Should I go to the auto service asap?

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

Generally, a solid 'check engine light', or CEL, doesn't mean you need
to stop driving immediately. If it were flashing, a different story.
Take the car to an auto store like Autozone - they will pull the error
codes for free and give an idea of how to fix it. If you post back
here, I'm sure you'll get plenty of advice as to how to fix the
problem.

Dan D
'07 Ody EX
Central NJ USA

 

Ditto word for word what Dano said.

The alternative to having Autozone read the code for you is
to follow the steps at
http://www.autozone.com/addVehicleId,1609003/initialAction,repairGuide/shopping/repairGuide.htm?pageId=0900c1528005f5a6

The text is as follows:
On... 1985-91 Prelude models, there is only one LED display.
The LED will blink to indicate the trouble code. [For a 1991
Prelude, t]he engine Electronic Control Unit (ECU) is
located under the carpet on the right front passenger
footwell.

Codes 1 through 9 are indicated by a series of short
flashes; two-digit codes use a long flash for the first
digit followed by the appropriate number of short flashes.
For example, Code 14 would be indicated by 1 long flash
followed by 4 short flashes. Codes are separated by a pause
between displays. Multiple codes are transmitted in an
alternating pattern. For example, a code 3 and 14 would be
displayed as 3 short flashes (for Code 3) followed by the
separator pause, then 1 long flash and 4 short flashes (for
Code 14).
Access the ECU.
Turn the ignition switch ON; the LED will display any stored
codes by rhythmic flashing.
In the event that a code is encountered which is not on the
chart, re-count the number of flashes. If the code is truly
wrong, it will be necessary to swap the ECU for a known-good
unit and recheck. Since this can be expensive, you may wish
to bring the car to a reputable repair facility if no other
cause of the failure can be found. This may save you the
expense of purchasing an unnecessary part.
If no codes are displayed but a driveablity problem exits,
testing of the individual components of the system is
necessary to find the problem. If codes are displayed,
follow the appropriate troubleshooting chart in this
section.

See the link illustrations and more info.

 

It's the typical symptom of Check Engine Light set by O2 sensor due to
a lean mixture, commonly appears when using E10 gasohol on older
cars.
You may want to drive to a shop and leave the engine running when that
happens again so that the scanner can read