My 2000 Max was giving me a P420 code and I was told I needed to replace the cat converter. I have since done that and the check engine light is still on, I have driven the car about 200 miles already, how do I go about getting the light to turn off? Will disconnecting the battery wire help?

Thanks for any help

John

 

Autozone type places should be able to reset the codes for free I believe.

 

Hey John,

I'm just teasing you here, but I was breezing through the forums and couldn't help but notice the 'sticky' right above your post! They try to walk you through situations such as these.

I just thought that was funny! Good Luck with that code!

Swee

 

First of all a 0420 code does NOT necessarily mean a bad cat. It can also mean you need to have your computer reprogrammed. The 5th gens had issues witht he computers and some needed to be "flashed" to get them reading all their instruments rights. You can have any local garage reset the engine light who has diagnostic gear.

I would suggest having the computer reprogrammed as well.

 

+1. My car was throwing a P0420. Dealer updated the software on the ECM...the charge was covered under 8yr/80k mile warranty.

 

Also, yes, disconnecting the battery overnight will clear the codes. But if it comes back, then you know that the problem was not solved.

 

how do you turn the light off?
fix the problem that its telling you about

 

He was under the impression that he did. Provide some help instead of some bs like this.

Go to AZ and get them to reset it or disconnect the battery over night. If it comes back then get your comp. reprogrammed.

 

it wasnt BS...if the light is on...he didnt fix the problem. he needs to fix the problem, not ignore it by turning the light off


my knee is killing me...how to i get the pain to go away?
take tylenol?
find out whats causing the pain?

and your "help" was posting the same thing everyone already said? well you sure are the helpful one :

 

Every thread that comes up you've always got some BS to add. Bashing on the kid that doesn't know everything about his car, unlike you.

Perhaps if we had half the knowledge that you have then there wouldn't be a need for the org in the first place. Maybe they should rename it Sooner F$^% . Org.

 

again...i told him what he needed to know. "find out what is causing the light and fix the problem". how is that bashing on the kid? im telling him the truth.
you (and everyone else) are giving him the bandaid fix "disconnect the battery" well thats the real BS here cause you have no idea how to fix the problem.
yes, the light will go away but since he didnt fix the problem it will come right back on. he will post again....people like you will reply again. you dont know know how to fix the problem...you know how to ignore the problem but getting rid of the light.

and i'll ignore you running your mouth

 

Sometimes you have to reset the ECU after fixing a problem. I've never known it to go away if it's been fixed unless the ECU is reset (at least, not with my MAF, coils, or 02 sensors). I think that is what the initial question was....
"I fixed what I think the problem was, how do I reset my ECU? (to see if it actually fixed the problem)"

 

if the problem is fixed, the ECU will realize that and turn itself off.
it checks at every start up. if it sees a problem 2-3 times, it trips the light. if it checks again and the problem is gone it will go off (again, 2-3 times IIRC)

 

Everyone on the org. knows exactly what I am talking about but just don't say it for the sake of argument. So... for the sake of argument I'll leave it at that.

 

Interesting. I had no idea. Perhaps it's different for 5.0/5.5 gen?

 

Thanks for the posts guys that actually helped me. If people took the time to read the post and not just chomp at the bit to be a wise a$$ then they would realize that my question was, after fixing the problem (or so I thought) how do I get the light to shut off? I didn't know if it would go off by itself after a certain period of time or a number of start ups, which eventually was answered.

For the other guys that commented on the 420, I had the ECM updated a while back and have had two different shops (one being Nissan) tell me I needed a new Cat, so that's why I went ahead and replaced it. I should have mentioned that in my first post.

I hope I didn't waste $500 on a cat if I didn't need it, but that's what I was told.

Thanks

John

 

nope...same thing worked on the 00 i had for 3 years

 

Good to know...I guess I'm always anxious to kill the light, plus I usually disconnect the battery when doing the work anyway

 

Yeah sorry I just assume someone told you, you needed a new cat because someone tried to pull that crap with me and Nissan told me straight that it was MOST likely the ECU needing to be reprogrammed.