Today as I was pulling out of my driveway, 2018 Outback, my Check Engine light came on and both my Cruise Control and Xmode lights were flashing. After failing to turn them off, I referred to my book. Page 3-30. At the bottom there is a warning that if the Check Engine light is on and the Cruise Control and Xmode lights were flashing to not drive the car at high speed and take it immediately to a dealer.
I live 50 miles one way from my (or any) Subaru dealer, and I wanted to know what “high speed” meant. But first, I thought I’d call my local mechanic, five miles away to see if he could diagnose the problem and/or fix it. He couldn’t touch it until next Tuesday. So I called the dealer to ask what “high speed” meant, and if I could take it to a local dealership owned by the same company but that services Fords and was 18 miles away. The dealer was okay with this.
So I called the Ford dealer; they couldn’t touch it until Thursday. So I called the dealer back, and made an appointment for 1:00 that afternoon; 50 miles away.
I drove down, keeping the car at 55 mph (the service dept. said 65 was considered “high”), having my flashers on because I didn’t know what was going to happen, all the while dodging semis that were going 70 (speed limit on the Interstate is 70). Oh, the fun!
I got to the dealer, and no sooner had I sat down in the waiting area, I was called to the service desk. My car was ready to go. What was the problem? The gas cap came off.
So the lesson is: If these three lights come on and act this way, first check your gas cap. And put it back on, making sure it clicks. If that won’t solve the problem, then take it to the dealer; no matter where they are because then it’s something serious.
