# 1998 Honda Civic Sdn - CEL stays on

**URL:** <https://community.cartalk.com/t/1998-honda-civic-sdn-cel-stays-on/174211>\
**Category:** Maintenance/Repairs\
**Tags:** engines, honda\
**Created:** [January 16, 2021, 1:07am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1998-honda-civic-sdn-cel-stays-on/174211 "2021-01-16T01:07:20Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![allyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ec9cab/32.png) [@allyn](https://community.cartalk.com/u/allyn)\
**Post date:** [January 16, 2021, 1:07am UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1998-honda-civic-sdn-cel-stays-on/174211/1 "2021-01-16T01:07:20Z")

</div>

what causes the check engine light to stay on?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Purebred](https://sea1.discourse-cdn.com/cartalk/user_avatar/community.cartalk.com/purebred/32/46796_2.png) [@Purebred](https://community.cartalk.com/u/Purebred)\
**Post date:** [January 16, 2021, 1:12pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1998-honda-civic-sdn-cel-stays-on/174211/2 "2021-01-16T13:12:20Z")

</div>

The codes you get from the OBDII port will point you to your answer.  
You can Google the code number(s) to find out what they mean or post the numbers here.  
If you choose to post back with the numbers be sure to post back with **all** the information about your vehicle.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![davepsinbox\_157004](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/73ab20/32.png) [@davepsinbox\_157004](https://community.cartalk.com/u/davepsinbox_157004)\
**Post date:** [January 16, 2021, 10:18pm UTC](https://community.cartalk.com/t/1998-honda-civic-sdn-cel-stays-on/174211/3 "2021-01-16T22:18:33Z")

</div>

The light stays on because there’s a problem that hasn’t been corrected. Either follow @Purebred 's advice or just take the car to a shop and let them diagnose it and give you an estimate. You’ll also need to decide how much you’re willing to invest in fixing a 22 year old car in case it’s something expensive.