Just bought a Civic 2007 LX 4D and went for a smog check and turns out the check engine light should have been on. Took apart the speedometer and saw that the check engine bulb was torn off by the previous owner. I was able to find the bulb and was wondering what my options might be?
Put the bulb in. First see if any other indicator lights are out - replace those, too. Then run the car and, if the CEL comes on, have the codes read. Someone here can help if you report the codes (P followed by 4 digits format) and describe how the car is starting and running. Good luck.
Sounds like someone didn’t know how to or wasn’t brave enough to deal with the problem like a rational person.
Reinstall bulb and read and deal with the codes… Post the codes here if you like but obviously that vehicle was trying to tell the former owner what was wrong, but they weren’t interested apparently.
The code is P0123 but i just replaced the thermostat and put in new anti freeze, the problem is the check engine light will remain off as the cluster functions w LED lights and the owner completely ripped out the check engine one from the circuit board.
P0123 is Throttle Position Sensor (TPS) circuit high input.
I’m not sure what you mean by “completely ripped out…” the circuit board is damaged AND is missing an LED?
Those cars are pretty common and used parts from an auto recycler may be a good way to go.
Why it needs a new thermostat and coolant - possible coolant leak or head gasket damage? You want to avoid overheating this engine.
Is the place the CEL LED should be located near where it says R309 ? And they just yanked it off the circuit board? … lol. I guess they did what they thought they had to do to sell the car. BTW, won’t do much good now, but next time when buying a used car you should always verify the CEL turns on with the key in “on” but the engine not started. And the advice here is to always have your own mechanic inspect a potential used car purchase before finalizing the deal. Ok,enough w/all that. …
So what to do? hmmm … it’s a little tricky to find a replacement to solder back in b/c there are LED’s which are just that, only LED’s. Those will have a matching resistor on the circuit board. And there are other versions of LED’s that have a resistor in series with them in the same package. Those are designed to operate at a certain voltage. Probably what I’d do in that situation — if I couldn’t find the exact replacement part to install – is start by installing a 12 volt LED. It might just work. If it didn’t, it wouldn’t likely harm anything else, just be too dim. From that I’d try some LED’s with lessresistance in series w/them until I got theriht combo of LED and resistor to match the brightness of the other lights.
Most people of course would just buy another circuit board, but that may prove expensive.
As mentioned above the P0123 is a problem with the throttle position sensor circuit. Unrelated to the thermostat or coolant. That function has to work correctly to have much chance of passing emissions testing. Start w/a careful examination of the throttle position sensor’s connector, both sides. Anything broken or corroded?
Late advice here, sorry, but for the future and for others who could tune-in to this discussion…
Whenever considering a used car for purchase, besides the test drive and other checks, always set the ignition to the “on” position, not all the way to “start” and observe the dashboard lights.
Be sure to look specifically for the “Service Engine Soon” or “Check Engine” light to illuminate as designed as a check procedure. (Of course that light should go out when the vehicle is run/driven).
If it doesn’t come on with all the other lights during this test walk/run away from the deal (and the seller). 
Someone has removed or disabled the light or it’s otherwise inoperative and it needs repairs. You don’t need to waste your time or money on all the repairs that car is going to need and you’ll have no idea what those repairs could entail. 
CSA
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I’m curious to know where you bought the car.
If you bought it from a private seller, or a dealership where it was sold “as is,” you might not have recourse, but if you bought it from a legitimate dealership and it was a “certified used car,” I’d take it back to them and negotiate to have them fix it at their cost.
As I’ve said many times, “certified” used cars are not checked as thoroughly as they claim, and you should always get any used car checked out by your mechanic (who you are paying, to remove conflict of interest) before you buy it. Don’t let a used car salesperson talk you out of this.
I think 3 years old is the limit for ’ Certified " vehicles.
I know of at least one that is 6 years, but a 2006 or 2007 Honda is not likely a candidate for a true manufacturer backed certified vehicle warranty.
CSA
P.S. EDIT/ADDITION
From Honda…
"Newer Than 6 Years Old
Only vehicles under six years old are considered for HondaTrue, so you know you’re getting the newest vehicles in prime condition.
Honda-trained technicians only consider vehicles HondaTrue if they pass a thorough 182-point inspection."
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LED303 and companion capacitor C303 have been torn off the board by some ham-fisted moron. The LED pads are ripped off the board. This will make soldering a new LED into that position difficult but not impossible. The easiest thing to do is to use an Exacto knife to gently scrape away the solder mask and expose the remaining copper traces nearby. Then super glue the LED to the circuit board- paying attention to the orientation because it has a polarity to observe, and then solder some small wires from the LED terminals to the exposed copper traces. Then replace the capacitor- a 0.1 uF ceramic cap will suffice.
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