Hello, I had to get a the Camshaft position sensor replace, I was going to do it myself but due to time constraints could not.

The problem I have is the repair shop is saying that due to the cam coming slightly out they now need to send it to an engine shop since they say the cam should not do that. I saw on a video that you just push or tap the cam back in flush with the engine.

I call the dodge dealer they say the cam does go sideways but to tap in in they never heard of it. Can someone tell me which is true.

1998 neon 2.0 SOHC engine.

Thanks,

 

I have a SOHC engine too. The camshaft is held in place by the bearings only. You effectively clamp it into a fixed position when you put on the belt and tension it, but I have seen that you can have a little back and forth slip in a cam, but if your cam has slipped so far out of whack that you cannot put the cam sensor back on easily, then you may have a cam or cam bearing wear that is so far out of spec you need to have that addressed now.

If your camshaft is moving that much, it most likely is making contact with the sensor and is chewing it up and wearing it out - and could be ruining your camshaft too. They are not supposed to touch, the magnets in the camshaft rotate and the sensor picks up the fluctuating magnetic field, if they touch, it can damage the sensors ability to read the flux and give bad readouts. Look at your old sensor and see if you detect any visible signs of wear on it. If you do, then you really need to have the cam and cam bearings checked to see if they are still in spec. BTW, if your camshaft moves back and forth too much, that will put extra strain on the timing belt, causing premature wear and premature failure.