The other day, after a ton of rain and driving through rivers of water on the city streets, when the rain had passed and I was heading home I noticed my engine light on. I wondered if it had anything to do with parts of the car getting soaked. Sure enough the indicator went off by the next day. What could this have been?
That's EXACTLY what I was gonna say when I first read the post but didn't. To Nudriver: we're not being smart alecks (well, maybe a little bit). The point is that a zillion things can trigger the CEL, and whatever fault is can resolve, and the CEL goes out. So just because X was happening when the CEL came on doesn't mean that X is at all related. BTW, you probably know that the CEL is primarily a check on the emissions system. Generally speaking, driving with the CEL on does not hurt anything (other than the environment).
I didn't know it was emissions connected as a sensor, but good to know. I always have dreaded that light coming on in any car I've driven, assuming it would be a project to deal with. I know many things can trigger the CEL, but my point was that it had rained very heavily and I was wondering if water splashing up under the car or into the engine would damage something, and thus the indicator coming on.
There should be a code stored if the CEL came on. Check that code and it might give you a clue. Take it to the auto store and they will probably scan the system for free.
