I discovered something today while refueling that would have made me feel stupid if not for my happiness from what I found.

My check engine light had come on again a few days ago and I have been ignoring it until I can get back to the dealer thinking I would need to get a replacement gas cap.

Anyway, when I went to refuel, I found my gas cap loose!! My first thought was that it had somehow vibrated loose because I KNEW I had tightened the fuel cap last time I refueled. I got done refueling and closed the cap until it clicked as I usually do and then pulled on it and LO AND BEHOLD, it pulled right off! I tried again and the cap went on correctly and would not pull off. It seems the cap can be a little deceiving sometimes and feel like it is on when it is really not, so I would suggest just getting in the habit of pulling on the cap a little after refueling just to make sure it is on correctly.

I've never seen a tricky gas cap like the one on the 3 before, but it's good to know what's going on.

.....at least I HOPE this solves my problem!

 

You can get the light to go out by disconnecting the battery for a minute, then reconnecting it. Or, just ignore and it will go out eventually on it's own.

 

So far, no more problems, no more pesky CEL. I honestly believe this solved my problem and I hope this helps someone else.

To reitterate, the gas cap is tricky. Pull it to make sure it is secure before you crank the car up.