I am a little confused, I know that there are 2 cam solenoids - actuators (intake and exhaust) But.. Is there also a cam position sensor? Redline Manual trans
Mike :willy:
Yes, there are actuator solenoids and a position sensor. The solenoids articulate the cams for the VVT. The position sensor lets the ECM know what position they're in in their rotation.
718 would be the Exhaust Cam Solenoid. 725 is the Cam Position Sensor. My ASSuME-tion is that since he mentioned exhaust and solenoid that it was 718 since 725 is a sensor and neither exhaust or intake specific...though times the intake cam.
In the first message of this thread the OP asked about the cam position sensor. That is why I posted and mentioned 725, which is the camshaft position sensor.
Actually Dave, no, it's not. For some folks who may be less technically inclined when it comes to cars than others (and not saying 44th is...just in general) that it can be confusing with the cam sensors and solenoids. Hell, it confuses people who are technically inclined sometimes.
And for clarification (further):
718 is the exhaust Cam Solenoid Actuator
719 is the intake Cam Solenoid Actuator
725 is the Cam position Sensor
Robo, you hit the nail on the head. As my SKY is an NA, I haven't anticipated engine knowledge as that much of a 'need to know'. But, now with a GXP coupe, I'm going to be taking a different tack on engine issues. And, I know DaveOC has a terrific amount of knowledge too! :grin:
Thanks to everyone, gives me a much better understanding of the engine.
I had a P0014 code, and I replaced Part#718 - found it on eBay for $17...
And driving 500 miles now with no engine light
Thanks Again,
I am hoping in the future I will be able to help someone
Hello! How is it going? I was just reading this thread. My check engine light is on for almost about a year now. My husband and I already went to 4 different auto shops to have them check what was going on. The first auto shop said that it was the camshaft solenoid. So my husband bought the parts since its cheaper than buying it from them. My husband left the country for job abroad, I didnt know which auto part he went to so i went to a different one. They replaced my solenoids ( I have a Buick Verano 2012 btw) but they told me its only a 50-50 chance that it would fix the problem. They turned the code off for me and told me that if it comes back on, just come back to the shop because the car will need a timing chain replacement. They didnt tell me why tho and they told me it will cost me $1700 which i find ridiculously expensive. To make sure, I went to a different auto shop to have it checked, they told me that I only have 105,000 miles so it couldnt be the timing chain. They said they would try flushing the oil. They couldnt figure out what was wrong either, they turned my CEL off but it came back on after 30 mins. I went to the last auto shop, they said they will try and flush the oil again and told me that my timing chain was worn off. I dont understand how they could tell that without taking the ecotec cover to actually look at it and they said it will cost me $1250. I was so desperate so I went and bought a code reader to check it myself and the same code that you had appeared. P0014 i dont understand why its appearing, i just had the auto shop replaced my solenoids. I was just wondering tho, because i was able to turn the CEL off with my code reader and the CEL hasnt appeared till now. How is your car? I know this thread was like a year old.
PS I went to valvoline Feb 2018, I just changed my oil this October. This is my first car and I dont know anything about cars. I was waiting for my "Change Oil Soon" message on my dashboard but it never appeared so I assume that my oil is still ok Valvoline staff didnt put any sticker on my windshield for my oil and mileage. The autoshops told me that putting the wrong oil also damages timing chain.
The Buick Verano and the Saturn Sky/Pontiac Solstice share the same engine configuration (ecotec) which is what likely led you to this forum.
It seems as if both of your intake and exhaust solenoids (Camshaft Position Actuators) have been replaced but I did not see any mention of your camshaft position sensor being replaced at the same time. I had a similar problem with my Sky and replaced all three items, deleted the code, and the problem never came back. Can you confirm if the position sensor was replaced at the same time the solenoids were replaced?
Jim, thanks much for the post you just made. I've copied your post and links for my archive's records. When that time comes for my engines, I'll have the parts story. Thanks.
In checking an eBay seller's items, the cam position sensor unit had an extensive list of compatible GM cars. Missing from that list was any GXP or REDLINE units for compatibility. Cobalt and HHR turbos were the only turbos listed. Could that be the case that that unit WOULD NOT fit the GXP or REDLINE of any year? OR, maybe just an oversight?
No problem at all. Using the OEM Part Number from the Amazon page in my Google search for the position sensor, I find hits on one of the GM Parts web pages. That page (listed here https://www.gmpartsdirect.com/oem-parts/gm-camshaft-position-sensor-12577245) shows the models that this is compatible for. Below is a quote from their page where you see both Solstice and Sky (and Verano) , plus you see 2.4L and 2.0L turbocharged, so we are covered
I want to be clear on this issue....Is the Cam Position Sensor exclusive to the manual or turbo?
The reason I asked was that I had started a thread a few weeks ago called TRANSMISSION PROBLEMS? and it turned out to be the ACTUATORS and I replaced them both on my BASE LINE Sky AUTOMATIC.
If replacing the actuators solved your problem you do not need to replace the sensors. Replacing the sensors is the next step if new actuators do not solve the problem.
The most noticeable thing I noticed with my manual transmission was a loss of power and a service engine light.
The hard shifting that the automatic does is a side-effect of the power loss, not the main problem, and you are correct that the manual transmission only downshifts hard when the driver causes it to.
The solenoid failure is an engine malfunction. It appears to be a transmission problem with the automatics because the TCM doesn't know what is going on with the engine and tries to compensate.
When the TCM and the ECM disagree as to the expected conditions, the trans goes into a protected mode, resulting in the hard downshifting.
It does not affect manual transmission vehicles.
:dunno:
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