I was told that most of the warning lights come on very early so that you have the time to make it in to be serviced. The exceptions to that rule, I think, would be the battery light and the omigodyourcarisoverheatingrightNOW light.

I was told that most of the warning lights come on very early so that you have the time to make it in to service.

I've been told that too. Plus, there's no little ! sign, which BMW likes to use for the big stuff.

My GTI has a screen that actually has words on it. "Please Refuel", or "Oil Change Soon", or whathaveyou.

In 2005, I high-centered on some poorly-maintained streets, and badly damaged the underside of the car. I just thought I'd hit a bump hard - "Bang!" and the car shook - but no big deal. (Made a passing pedestrian jump, though - that should have been my first clue.)

I was looking for parking about a block away, and had to turn around - and that's when I noticed the big line of moisture down the street where I...had just been...driving...

...oh. I thought, "Is that my car?"

And the screen in the dash lit up all flashing and blinking with huge red letters: "STOP!"

I did.

I'd ripped the oilpan off. All the oil was rushing out of my car - when I turned the engine off, I could hear the liquid sound underneath. The repair dude said if I'd driven another 10 or 15 feet, the engine would have seized - new car time.

I was *so* fortunate. And I'll never forget "STOP!"

And the screen in the dash lit up all flashing and blinking with huge red letters: "STOP!"

Now that's an effective warning light. My warning light looked like a human heart. I was all, "I have a blockage in my ventricle?"

I kind of wonder though if I would be tempted to talk back to the car.

Dashboard: STOP!

Me: NO! YOU ARE NOT THE BOSS OF ME.

My warning light looked like a human heart. I was all, "I have a blockage in my ventricle?"

Next will be some sort of air-particulate sensor, and it'll flash a wagging-finger sign when you've got a donut in the car.

Me: NO! YOU ARE NOT THE BOSS OF ME.

Da!

However, at the time, I was all "BY YOUR COMMAND IMPERIOUS LEADER"

I talk back to my Sprint Navigation. (I've named her Moneypenny.)

Moneypenny: You are now off track...

Me: No, I'm NOT!

Hee

Visual warnings are good things.

I was halfway to altitude on aerotow once, giving a sailplane ride, when a thin stream of smoke started coming from the towplane.

Very pretty. Just like a display at an airshow.

I called him on the radio. "Ah, Tow One, Blanik Eight Seven Zero, you're showing a little smoke there, everything okay?"

No radio reply, but there was a two second pause and then he gave me the "Release right the fuck now!" waveoff, then peeled off and headed for the runway and made a for-real power-off landing.

Later, the tow pilot said that when I called all the instruments showed everything was fine, but half a second later the oil pressure needle hit the bottom peg. Turned out that the Super Cub's prop seal had blown. No engine damage, though, thanks to just a little warning and some quick reactions.