cam sensor shaft

35tsc

Registered User
I have a friend who was having trouble with his SC. He replaced the crank sensor and dis moduel and all was fine. He was driving down the road and it just quit after about 500 miles after the fix. He soon found out when he took the cam sensor shaft out the gear on the lower part was all torn up. Has anyone seen this? He was wondering if something was not aligned inside that would cause this. Need some suggestions as if he needs to break down the entire engine or just replace the shaft. Just a little weary of putting a new shaft in and then 15 minutes later it quits because the gears are torn up again. Any comments or suggestions would be helpful.

Thanks
Mark
 
I had the same problem a few years ago caused me to let my sc sit for a year because ford dealer and another mechanic stated that it was the dis module. Mechanic at bortnick ford told me my cam shaft sensor was loose and that they readjusted it and the car would still not run duh! The harmonic balancer, I believe thats what its called had sheared of the camshaft. caused me much misery. Its located under the timing chain cover . Maybe someone who reads this post will clarify my statements if there not on the mark. worth looking into. The reason the car was setting, was because I was waiting on a back ordered dis module,suffice it to say I now have a spare dis module. caused by poor diagnostic work by ford mechanics.:eek:
 
Mark the Cam Sensor housing is basically a distributor replacement. This is the same thing that would happen if you lost a distributor gear on an older car. Take the current sensor out if it isn't and peer down the hole with a pen light. You should be able to see the camshaft in the center of the block. On the front end of the cam right under the hole will be the distributor drive gear. Look the teeth over really hard. Look for: missing, uneven height, chipped, sharp, thin, or tapered teeth. Anything other than an smooth, flat, even tooth pattern. If you see any damage like this then the cam is junk and a new shaft won't last like you said. It's entirely possible that it's good. You will need someone to turn the crank over with a socket and breaker bar attached to the crankshaft damper bolt. Turn clockwise at least two complete turns to see the whole cam radius.

Vernon
 
thanks

thanks for all your replies.

What could it be to chew up the teeth on the shaft end. Misallignment when putting a new sensor on?????

Thanks again
Mark
 
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The same shaft also drives the oil pump. Enough strain to chew the teeth up would have me wondering if the oil pump is jamming up and causing the problem. I would be pulling it off for inspection also. I think the gear on the syncro/oil pump drive shaft is softer than the one on the cam, so maybe it will be okay.

David
 
Oh yeah I had thought about that but forgot to mention anything. Misalignment is not likely unless the front cover has been off and the thrust button didn't get reinstalled on front of the cam. Look for excessive oil gunk build-up inside the crank case. These gears are lubed by oil splash so it's conceivable that enough crud has built up to block oil draining into this area. The oil drains in the front of each head would be a good place to look. If you notice much of it you should run motor flush through the engine. Then remove and clean out the pan.

Vernon
 
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