Help!!! The check engine light just came on in my 2005 EX Accord with 54,000 miles. I took it right to Auto zone and had them pull the code. The code P2185 came up and the guy's hand held code reader said that it happened twice and that the coolant temperature sensor was bad.

So 3 questions:

1. Can I still drive it to work (74 miles each way)?
2. Is this easy to fix?
3. Could something else be causing this code?

Thanks

 

All it is is a sensor. Haven't you noticed your coolant temp gauge isn't functioning properly?

 

It just happened and I hadn't let the car even cool down yet. But can I still drive it to work?

 

Of course, it's just a sensor. Modern engines are pretty indestructable anyway (as long as it's not an electrical failure), you can run them pretty messed up and they'll still work. Nothing else relies on it except your temp gauge. You can probably pick up a used one from a junkyard for not too much.

 

So the engine cooling system does not use it?

 

The cooling system is mechanical. It uses a water pump which is driven by the timing belt to circulate coolant through your engine and the radiator. It always runs and it's only dependant on how fast your engine is spinning. I don't believe there's anything electrical in it at all.

Either way, if you plan on keeping the car, buy a service manual. It'll pay for itself just by doing this. www.helminc.com

 

Thanks 98CoupV6 for all your help. I light turned it's self off so I'm not going to stop worry about it.

 

You're welcome I'd still buy a service manual and test it out yourself if you have the tools and desire. If it's an intermittent problem it could come back again, or it could be a sign of a problem somewhere else. Either way, it takes 2 driving 'trips' of no failures for the light to shut off, so it may have been that you just had a little glitch or water under the ground or something.