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Intermittently runs great and then back to terrible

Tiny
SANDY LACKEY
  • MEMBER
  • 2005 CHRYSLER PT CRUISER
  • 116,000 MILES
Hello, We have a 2005 PT Cruiser with 116,000 miles on it. Recently the check engine light came on and were told it was a cam shaft sensor. We have replaced the gas cap, spark plugs, spark plug wires, cam shaft sensor & ignition coil and the problem still is there. It is sputtering when we press the gas peddle and can't get up to speed.

Sometimes it will get up there and other times it won't, it also might work if we remove the gas cap and put it back on. Is there something else we should fix?
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Tuesday, October 4th, 2011 AT 3:29 PM

7 Replies

Tiny
DAN_K
  • MECHANIC
  • 213 POSTS
Start with the Check Engine light. Have the Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTCs) been read? If so, what were they? Begin your diagnosis with the trouble codes.
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Tuesday, October 4th, 2011 AT 3:41 PM
Tiny
SANDY LACKEY
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
Yes, the code was checked and what it said it was we replaced. Which I think was the cam shaft sensor. And the problem is still there. It****** trying to get up to speed like it is starved for fuel.
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Tuesday, October 4th, 2011 AT 5:04 PM
Tiny
DAN_K
  • MECHANIC
  • 213 POSTS
Always remember that the scan tool will provide a trouble code and identify a fault. However, just because the code named the camshaft sensor, that doesn't always mean that the sensor itself is at fault. It's just a good place to start your diagnosis. If the camshaft sensor is the magnetic (or Hall Effect) type, there is actually another piece to the camshaft sensor. It is probably mounded on the camshaft gear itself. It may be a magnetic pickup or a tone-ring. Or, the wiring to the camshaft sensor may be at fault.

My advice would be to acquire a good service manual and start from the beginning. If you're still getting a camshaft sensor fault code, start with the camshaft sensor circuit.
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Tuesday, October 4th, 2011 AT 5:10 PM
Tiny
SANDY LACKEY
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
I broke down after replacing 4 different parts and took it to a repair shop and after they did the diagnosis on it are telling me it is the wiring harness. Chrysler apparently knows there is an issue but we all have to pay for it. The part is on back order with Chrysler with no promise of a delivery date. It looks like a years worth of payments to fix it.
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Wednesday, October 5th, 2011 AT 11:40 PM
Tiny
JACOBANDNICKOLAS
  • MECHANIC
  • 108,192 POSTS
You could get a wiring harness from a salvage yard and install it yourself. It is a matter of installing one wire at a time.
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Sunday, October 9th, 2011 AT 5:10 AM
Tiny
SANDY LACKEY
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
We are thinking about going to a salvage yard but I need to know if it has to be an 05 model that we get it from, since our car is a 2005. The place we were going to go has an 07 wiring harness. I am not sure I can tell the difference.
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Friday, October 21st, 2011 AT 6:37 PM
Tiny
SANDY LACKEY
  • MEMBER
  • 5 POSTS
Do you know if a wiring harness for a 2007 PT Cruiser will fit ok in a 2005 PT Cruiser?
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Friday, October 21st, 2011 AT 9:49 PM

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