I have a 1998 v70,the check engine came on last week, it was reset by local mechanic. I was told the car needed to be driven for a while to completely reset the computer. Is that accurate and how many miles do you need to put on the car before it completely resets? NY state vehicle inspection cannot be done until the computer is clear.

Thanks

 

Im not 100% sure about about volvo, but being that it is OBDII the monitors will reset around 50-75 miles or 6 full cycles. That means 6 times from cold up to operating temp. That is also when you will find out if your CEL will come back on. Did the mechanic tell you what code was pulled? I had a problem with a P0116 coolant temp sensor and it wouldnt allow the rest of the monitors to reset, which the inspection station will see. You need to find out why the CEL is on and fix it before inspection or you'll likely fail.

 

Thanks nughuffer, coolant sensor and thermostat was replaced 1 month ago, CEL came back on 3 days later and car was running rough and stalling. The mechanic unplugged MAF sensor and re-plugged it back in to see if it would run better which it did and reset CEL afterwards. I suspect the MAF may be failing. CEL was reset 3 days ago, went for emission test today and was told to drive it a few more days to allow time to reset and bring it back, Does that sound right?

 

Sounds right, you havent driven enough for all the monitors to reset. If the MAF is on its way out once the monitors dofinally reset it will likely throw the code again. Good luck, Ive been through this type of thing before and its quite annoying.