"saxman" > wrote in message
oups.com...
>I have a 1999 (new body style) Jetta I just had a quick question about
> my check engine light. It was extremely cold here a few days ago, and
> I don't think I let the car warm up enough before I took off. As such,
> the car ran a little rough at first, and the check engine light came
> on. I stopped, let the car idle for a bit, and since then (2 days ago)
> the car has run perfectly fine - but the check engine light is still
> on. I'm planning on taking it to get the codes read, but my question
> is this: Does the check engine light remaining on mean there could
> still be a problem? Or does the light remain on after an error code is
> stored (at least until the code is cleared)?
>
> The reason that I ask the question is that the check engine light
> seemed to come on because of a specific event (starting when too
> cold). Since it runs perfectly normally now - my first thought is to
> get the code read / cleared, and see if the light comes back on. Does
> this sound reasonable?

I'd wait a little longer and see if it clears. If it ran rough the system
probably just detected a misfire and when it's "happy" that the misfire is a
random thing and not a constant recurring item it might go out.