Removing '05 GT Camshaft Position Sensor P0340

Is the passenger side Camshaft Position Sensor removable without much disassembly? It appears that a boss on the intake manifold above the sensor offers no clearance for lifting the sensor up and out. I can find no videos or posts that explain removal of the CPS.

 

Symptoms: occasional hard stutter, occasional stall at idle without warning. P0340 code. Stalling and difficult restarting are worse today.

 

Last month I had an Oil Control Valve code and found a small piece of silicone sealer or gasket inside the valve body (passenger side). Cleaning that solved the problem. The OCV was clean today. Oh, and who designed that heavy steel bracket that is in the way of removing the PS OCV?

Edited July 10, 2017 by jmcgliss

I know exactly what you're referring to, those hard stutters are kinda terrifying when they happen at full throttle. I thought I had blown a charge pipe the first time it happened.

 

If you can get the 10mm bolt out, you can get the sensor out. I had to dremel down a cheap 10mm 1/4in drive socket to do so, but I got it out.

So, you're saying the sensor swivels enough to clear the obstruction above it? The new part arrives in a few days. I'll report back with a photo.

So, you're saying the sensor swivels enough to clear the obstruction above it? The new part arrives in a few days. I'll report back with a photo.

 

Yup!

 

It's totally something was was intended to be serviced by taking more things off (like the intake manifold), but I got mine out without pulling basically anything apart (just the intercooler, obviously) by modifying a socket to be able to angle into the spot I needed, and also swearing at it a lot.

 

I grabbed a pair of used ones from 541 Motorsports for like $20 or $25 each, in case the driver's side one was flaky, but it's generally the one closer to the hot turbo that craps out.

Removal of the sensor wasn't too bad after moving valve cover and OCV breather hoses out of the way. I used a 1/4" swivel and extension coming straight down between the various hoses. What helped is the bolt head was only 8mm, not 10mm so that allowed more clearance. My fear that other parts would block lifting the sensor out were not a problem (red circle in photo).

 

The connector was another story. Someone had mangled the release tab. I verified the connector was still good with my multi-meter.

 

The green circle in the photo is where the new sensor will drop in.

 

EDIT: Road test is good!

Edited July 10, 2017 by jmcgliss

Hi. I'm brand new here, and a brand new Subaru owner as of Oct. 2018. I realize this is an old post, but hopefully my reply will get noticed.

 

Anyway, thanks for the post jmcgliss. It helps me a lot to confirm my suspicions.

 

I also have a '05 Legacy GT MT Sedan and it's running very rough and stalling and gives code P0340 (cam position sensor A circuit). The funny part is, this problem didn't really appear until the weather changed in November. When it's cold outside it runs fine at first. Then as it warms up, there's a "sweet spot" (or sour spot, in this case) where it will run rough and stall and is very difficult to keep running and restart, etc. Then once the engine is nice and warm, it runs great again. And as I said, it gives the P0340 code. Also, once it's warm, I can clear the code and it doesn't come back until the engine has had time to cool below the "sour spot". Rinse. Repeat.

 

My question is, how did you know which sensor to replace? I looked on other forums and youtube and such and it seemed easy to get at. So I bought a sensor with the intention or replacing it myself. Unfortunately real life proved dramatically different. I tried getting at the driver side one yesterday and it was impossible for someone with my limited space, tools, ability and courage. And it was freezing in my garage, so that didn't help.

 

Anyway, just wondering if it's worthwhile trying to get at the passenger side sensor. It looks a little more accessible, but I don't know which sensor is the defective one anyway. Or is it worth buying a second sensor and just replacing both? Fortunately I have a good mechanic who will let me bring in my own part and I'll just pay him for the install.

 

Anyway, hope someone can offer some insight.

 

Thanks,

$$$

P0340 is passenger side.

Hi. I'm brand new here, and a brand new Subaru owner as of Oct. 2018. I realize this is an old post, but hopefully my reply will get noticed.

 

Anyway, thanks for the post jmcgliss. It helps me a lot to confirm my suspicions.

 

I also have a '05 Legacy GT MT Sedan and it's running very rough and stalling and gives code P0340 (cam position sensor A circuit). The funny part is, this problem didn't really appear until the weather changed in November. When it's cold outside it runs fine at first. Then as it warms up, there's a "sweet spot" (or sour spot, in this case) where it will run rough and stall and is very difficult to keep running and restart, etc. Then once the engine is nice and warm, it runs great again. And as I said, it gives the P0340 code. Also, once it's warm, I can clear the code and it doesn't come back until the engine has had time to cool below the "sour spot". Rinse. Repeat.

 

My question is, how did you know which sensor to replace? I looked on other forums and youtube and such and it seemed easy to get at. So I bought a sensor with the intention or replacing it myself. Unfortunately real life proved dramatically different. I tried getting at the driver side one yesterday and it was impossible for someone with my limited space, tools, ability and courage. And it was freezing in my garage, so that didn't help.

 

Anyway, just wondering if it's worthwhile trying to get at the passenger side sensor. It looks a little more accessible, but I don't know which sensor is the defective one anyway. Or is it worth buying a second sensor and just replacing both? Fortunately I have a good mechanic who will let me bring in my own part and I'll just pay him for the install.

 

Anyway, hope someone can offer some insight.

 

Thanks,

$$$

 

 

Here's something you can use. Service manual,

 

http://people.csail.mit.edu/ilh/vacation/

 

 

#1 cylinder is also on the passenger side, so bank 1, circuit A, refer to that side.

 

Another thing for you to check. see if you have the larger orange seals between the TGV's and the intake manifold. The smaller/thinner black one's have been known to leak during cold weather, and cause stalling and issues. With a good light you should be able to see the color.

Edited January 21, 2019 by Max Capacity

Cam sensors are no problem to remove without any disassembly. Long 1/4" extensions and a universal 8mm socket and then pop it up with a small screwdriver and fish it out.

Wow, Max, thanks so much for the service manual! That should help tremendously.

 

I was about ready to give up, but since you're all telling me it's the passenger side, maybe I'll give it another go on my own. I'll invest in some socket attachments and will let you know how I make out.

 

Thanks to everyone for the help!

 

$$$

Well, I tried getting at the passenger side sensor and had no luck. I couldn't get at it because there's a detail on the engine directly above it that interferes with me getting a socket onto the 10mm bolt.

I brought it in to my mechanic and had him replace the sensor. It started up better (fewer cranks) and ran great with no issue the first time I drove it. A few hours later however on my second trip, the same symptom and same code came back.

 

So now I'm thinking wiring harness, unless it's possibly the other sensor, but a couple of the above replies indicate it's the passenger side. So I guess I have some more research to do. Thanks again for all the help. More updates as I have them.

 

$$$

The saga continues....

 

Took the car to the closest dealership (which happens to be in another country, but such is life) and told them the whole story. They performed their diagnostic and came to the same conclusion as me : cam sensor. I told them (more than once) that it's already been replaced but they thought this was the best course of action. So, ok....you're the experts. Change the sensor. No luck. And lots of money spent on wasted labour.

 

So on to the wiring harness. They replace that and it ran great for a few days....but by now we're into spring and the cold weather has left....until this past weekend.

 

A fresh powder of snow and freezing temperatures Saturday morning at the end of March and guess what....the problem returns, complete with rough idle, stalling and P0340 code.

 

So now I'm out $1300 with no resolution. And I don't want this to become my "summer car" just because it doesn't like the cold.

 

Any ideas? I did find another site that listed various causes for that code and a faulty CRANK sensor is actually a possibility, although I've never seen that code come up. I'm also getting intermittent misfire codes (P1301) and exhaust temperature codes (P1544) which I'm assuming is a symptom of the ignition timing being out of whack because of the actual root cause, whatever that may be. But the one consistent code is always the P0340 (cam sensor circuit A). So now what? I'm thinking the next thing is to find a cheap (ie. used) ECU and see if that makes a difference. Or at least remove mine and check the connections? Yes? No?

 

Please share your thoughts, folks. Any feedback would be appreciated.

 

Thanks for reading,

$$$

Out of curiosity where are you located paycheck? Wonder if someone knows a good place near you.

I'm in Windsor, Ontario. Dealership in Detroit is 20 minutes away depending on the border. Closest dealership in Canada is over an hour away.

This might sound somewhat silly, but I came across a similar set of symptoms and it manifested more in the cold too. It turned out to be a poor connection on the coolant temp sensor. Basically right behind the alternator on an EJ255. Once I replaced that connector it solved everything. In your situation i wonder if your coolant temp sensor is failing.

This might sound somewhat silly, but I came across a similar set of symptoms and it manifested more in the cold too. It turned out to be a poor connection on the coolant temp sensor. Basically right behind the alternator on an EJ255. Once I replaced that connector it solved everything. In your situation i wonder if your coolant temp sensor is failing.

 

Thanks for the reply. At this point, I'll try anything as long as it's not cost prohibitive. Looks like I'll be doing some web searches and video watching at lunch today.

 

In your case, did you ever get a code related to the coolant temp sensor?

 

$$$

I did get a code related to the sensor but it was so random. It wouldnt come up sometimes and other times it did.

 

It would cause the Temp sensor to max out on HOT instantly, and cause all kinds of hesitation, stumbling, practically cause the car to stall.

Any solution mate?

 

Sent from my Redmi Note 5 using Tapatalk

I still haven't had a chance to get back into it. Sadly, now that the weather up here in the Great White North is a little warmer (take off, hoser) the symptom no longer manifests.

 

I'll most likely wait until autumn and start again once the problem returns. This time I'll start with the coolant temp sensor as indicated in a previous reply.

 

I also have a friend with a kit that will let me do a data trace on each sensor to see if they're working correctly. Hopefully that will give me some insight on what to focus on when the time comes.

 

Thanks again for all the replies. I'll update again once I know anything new.

 

Peace!

$$$

Well, if anyone is still keeping an eye on this thread, it's coming into Autumn weather again and my car is starting to act up once more.

 

In the past year I've had the cam position sensor replaced (twice) and I even had the wiring harness swapped. Also no dice.

 

To make a long story short, I'll never go to that dealership again. :mad:

 

So now I've borrowed a friend's OBD cable so I can hopefully data log some of the other sensors and see which one might be the culprit. Based on the symptoms and the discussion above, I'll be starting with the Engine Temp sensor, maybe MAF, throttle position sensor and crank position sensor.

 

I'll post here what I find out.

 

$$$

Cold weather...back about 2010 I had issues when it got colder, turns out I have to replace small black O-rings between the Intake Manifold and the TGV's with the new larger orange ones. With a good light you can see the color if you look at that area.

 

Not sure that's your issue but looking is free.

Hello again, folks.

 

Just to keep the community updated (if anyone is still interested in this particular saga), last night I replaced the Intake to TGV gaskets (orange rings) and since I had my intake off, I also replaced the turbo inlet with a Perrin tube.

 

Good news : The car started up and ran even though this is the biggest undertaking I had ever attempted on any car.

 

Bad news : This had zero effect on the original issue. I still get exactly the same symptoms - P0340 cam sensor code, misfires on all 4 cylinders, rough idle and stalling until warm, runs fine once warmed up all the way.

 

A friend of mine who is a Subaru enthusiast is helping with research and he said he'll talk to someone he knows. In the mean time, I'll try to figure out the data logging with the Tactrix cable he loaned me. I tried looking at data logging a couple of months back but couldn't figure out what parameters I need to put in the log config file to specify what sensors I want to look at. So any advice on that issue would be helpful.

 

Thanks for reading.

 

$$$

 

 

P.S. Just found this on the Nasioc forum. Hmm....thoughts anyone?

https://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2786898&page=2

Edited December 18, 2019 by Paycheck
Added some info...

More updates....

 

So this morning was fairly cold (-5 deg. C) so I wanted to see if I could glean anything further from looking at individual sensor data as the car is warming up. My cheap $10 OBDII reader has a “current data” feature on it which lets me graph some of the more common sensors one at a time. Sadly, the cam position sensor isn't one of the available sensors, even though the P0340 code points to that sensor. In any case, I was looking at throttle position, MAF, engine coolant temp, intake temp, etc. They all appeared normal to my dumb eyes.

 

Then I noticed the “Intake Manifold Absolute Pressure” sensor. During idle, it was at about 0.3 atmosphere. Which makes sense to me, since the engine is generating vacuum. Then every time the engine sputtered as it warmed up, the value would increase (closer to atmosphere). It’s not clear from looking at the graph if it’s a symptom of the problem or the actual cause but if it IS the cause then I’m thinking it’s either a vacuum leak or the MAP sensor is failing or dirty. Either way, I have something else to research, clean and test.

 

More to come. Stay tuned.

 

$$$

Stumbled upon this.. not sure if you’ve seen already..maybe worth a try

See post 31

 

 

https://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2786898&page=2

Thanks Dave, but i already tried disconnecting the alternator. No dice.

 

Today I'm looking for vacuum leaks and I'll clean my MAP sensor.

 

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