Cam install went perfect - problem out of nowhere

[DynamiteBlues]

So i installed my FRPP hot rod cams and loaded the tune, started it up and everything went perfect. put it through a few heat cycles, got on it a little bit and it felt ALive as hell 4k+. hardly gave it much throttle though. it was cruising butter smooth all day then out of no where, it started sputtering and felt like it was missing and the entire engine started sounding deeper. Now i get P0012 over and over. i cleared it and it would come right back. I removed the cam position sensors and switched sides thinking maybe they're faulty and the cam isn't retarded like they think. nope still P0012- same side. But i actually got a P0340 after doing this as well. Hopefully that will Not come back. but what i think happened is - I lost a bit of the black rubber OEM sealant into the timing cover. i'm thinking i might have gotten a VCT solenoid stuck open from the debris and and out a VCT sensor. I want to switch the sensors to see if the code switches sides but what if the debris has it still stuck open? will it than take out another sensor ? any ideas or possibilities? i really don't want to take my timing cover off.

 

[mydangstang]

So i installed my FRPP hot rod cams and loaded the tune, started it up and everything went perfect. put it through a few heat cycles, got on it a little bit and it felt ALive as hell 4k+. hardly gave it much throttle though. it was cruising butter smooth all day then out of no where, it started sputtering and felt like it was missing and the entire engine started sounding deeper. Now i get P0012 over and over. i cleared it and it would come right back. I removed the cam position sensors and switched sides thinking maybe they're faulty and the cam isn't retarded like they think. nope still P0012- same side. But i actually got a P0340 after doing this as well. Hopefully that will Not come back. but what i think happened is - I lost a bit of the black rubber OEM sealant into the timing cover. i'm thinking i might have gotten a VCT solenoid stuck open from the debris and and out a VCT sensor. I want to switch the sensors to see if the code switches sides but what if the debris has it still stuck open? will it than take out another sensor ? any ideas or possibilities? i really don't want to take my timing cover off.

Wow I was happy to hear about your cam success until the 2nd part, Very interesting Hope you get it figured out

Subscribing

 

[808muscle]

F#ck dude sorry to read about this.............scraping that oem crap off without it getting it into the engine was a challenge. I spent a lot of time picking pieces out myself.

I dont know about the sensors but I would check all electrical connections just to make sure all were clicked closed completely.

 

[aleborjas]

check trims to see if is not timing chain problems

 

[DynamiteBlues]

does anyone think it is a good idea to swap the VCT solenoids from side to side to see if that is the problem? It drove so perfectly for the entire day then just bam, stuttering out of nowhere. my worry is with the piece of sealant in the engine maybe i'd have 2 broken VCT's after switching if the passenger passage is actually clogged underneath. Also if a solenoid is broken and locks the VCT fully retarded or wherever - does that ruin other parts while driving like this? like the phaser gear itself

 

[hammeron]

as far as the debris goes. it seems that for debris that
may have fallen down the front of the engine, it would
have to make it through the screen on the pickup tube
and also get through the oil filter before getting to the
vct solenoid(s).

also. i think on startup the pcm does a VCT sweep
through a certain number of degrees, if there is no dtc
associated with this sweep, that may tell us something
about the solenoids and if they are working or not.

 

[DynamiteBlues]

Very helpful post hammeron!
that was my initial feeling when it happened, thank you for confirming the passage to the solenoid. i'm going to say there is no way it got to the VCT solenoid then. its a decent sized piece. the gobs from the sides of the valve cover were too big for the screen and filter to not get them. The driving symptoms sluggish and stuttering from startup. sometimes the rpm's will hang like crazy in between shifts too. seems like it can never sit at its set idle, ends up closer to 1k and on startup goes really high for a minute and even sounds like i rev it really quick. P0012 only comes after a bit of driving or a few engine cycles. I only got a code during startup maybe once. it seems so just be after a bit of driving. maybe its my alternator ? or maybe it is just the solenoid sensor itself and its not clogged open

 

[06iornhorse]

i told you to just do it your not going to hurt anything. and also the vct solenoid sticks shut not open to full retard the cam. i strongly dont thing it was a piece of rtv for the same reason as stated above.

 

[DynamiteBlues]

Whats your opinion on the cause, maybe i'm looking at an alternator/battery issue more than an actual sensor ? Or do you think the engine just jumped a tooth while cruising at a steady RPM and idling, very light accel (this is what i was doing when it changed)

 

[hammeron]

if we can assume for the moment that the tune is
absolutely perfect, then i have to lean towards
a phaser problem. it seems the pcm is not able
to hold the cam in the commanded angle. now
why that is happening who knows. it could be
that oil can't flow freely to the phaser(s), or there
could be a physical problem with a phaser itself.

if the problem does not clear itself, you may need to
pull the cam covers and take a close look.

 

[06iornhorse]

i say swap the solenoids it takes five minutes at the most and you get a code p0022 its the solenoid. this is what the problem was with my car two weeks ago. do this before replacing the phasers as you really cant tell if they are bad unless the pin holding the spring broke. but at the same time my car ran bad the whole time and the code would show up with in a minut from start up.

 

[SirKnightTG]

I'm going to bet it's the alternator. When mine was acting up I'd get the P0340 code and the car would buck. Also my voltage would read under 13v after a short while of driving so I knew it was an electrical problem.

Since everything is controlled by the PCM on these new cars (which I dislike) voltage is very important for the operation of damn near everything. If something is screwed with the voltage all kinds of weird crap will happen.

 

[DynamiteBlues]

i say swap the solenoids it takes five minutes at the most and you get a code p0022 its the solenoid. this is what the problem was with my car two weeks ago. do this before replacing the phasers as you really cant tell if they are bad unless the pin holding the spring broke. but at the same time my car ran bad the whole time and the code would show up with in a minut from start up.

I have the newer heads so unfortunately i can't just remove the boot around the solenoid to get to the bolt - i have to actually take my cam covers off. I will tonight or tomorrow remove the covers and swap the solenoids. i hate that i don't have an IUP since i have no oil pressure or voltage gauge. I'm taking it for a drive soon, i just removed the battery and cleaned up the alternator wire and terminals and re-attatched it.

My code however does not show up from the minute i start it up. usually takes some time. i re-flashed it with the tune that worked Perfectly after the install. i'll report back with what codes and how long they took.

 

[JeremyH]

I believe Greg got that code with his hot rods. It took 2-3 days for it to start, his thrust bearing cap (foward most cap) came loose causing a loss of solenoid oil pressure and phaser problem. Tightened the bolts back down and checked/retorqued all the bolts and it went away.

 

[Greg Hazlett]

Yep-you could not hear the loose thrust bearing cap being loose at idle or low rpm's, it was only at half to full throttle that I heard the clanking noise coming from the drivers side valve cover...have you gone half-full throttle yet and if so do you hear any noises?

Have you done an oil change yet? I would think anything foreign in the system would be caught in the filter.

 

[DynamiteBlues]

okay so heres what i have - noise at Idle ! clanking ticking awful noises ! these noises are at all throttle %'s and all rpms. sounds so off. it misses everywhere. sounds wayy off. and the P0012 didn't come back for 1 minutes, then i turned the car off, right back on and gave it a little throttle and it finally came back in a minute or two. maybe i need to get in there and re-tourque everything ?

no oil change yet cams have been in for one day now. i'm starting to think the tune was perfect for an hour by chance, now it can never find an idle, it'll stay at 1k+ or dip to 500 and sound like it shuts off then comes back on. it is completely awful.

 

[DynamiteBlues]

I guess it Could be the thrust bearing cap, these problems didn't arise until about 5-10 minutes after i went half+ throttle and 4k+rpm. maybe it worked itself way too loose? more reason for me to switch the solenoids when the covers are off.

 

[Greg Hazlett]

Sounds exactly like what happened to me! I recommend taking the VC's off and checking all the caps! I only had one loose but it made all the difference!

 

[DynamiteBlues]

I must say a huge Thank you to lightblade and Greg Hazlett!!

Front Cam cap on the passenger side came loose! the bottom bolt was literally finger loose and the top one was about a half to full turn from the tq spec. i went a little passed the tq specs as it was i can't believe they backed out!! re torqued everything on both sides just to be sure. It runs Perfectly once again. too bad its raining here in NJ. i can't wait until its 80+ and sunny tomorrow, i'll get to see how it Really feels.

 

[stkjock]

cool, glad it was an easy fix