Cool No Check Engine Light On Startup References. Turn the vehicle on and off three times, a method that, to be clear, only works with certain models. The engine timing, inadequate fuel pressure, one or more faulty engine sensors, a blocked catalytic converter, or a problem with the engine ignition.

Web if the check engine light is on and the car won’t start, this points to a problem with one of the following: If you don’t replace it, you can lose fuel through evaporation causing you to consume more gas then needed. The odds are very high that an intermittent fault will eventually turn into a solid check engine light, so it's still important to address the issue even if the light occasionally goes off.