I was under the hood recently (03 evo), and the only notable thing I did was unplug, then re-plug the the wire harness that connects directly to the cam positioning sensor. I started my car 10 minutes later, and the idle is rough (lots of vibration) and the exhaust smells very rich (whew). I checked and cleaned the wire harness', checked the fuses, and the battery is fine. Car still idles rough. I didnt put any excessive stress on the wires when I disconnected-reconnected the harness. The mileage on this car isnt very high. The car ran fine before I disconnected one little wire harness. But the sensor couldnt have gone out just from me unplugging the harness....right? I'll admit Im kind of a noob. What am I missing?

 

its a very delicate piece. id buy a new one, which is like 50-60 bucks online, and just swap it out. however id check other things because when my CAS broke, my car wouldnt even turn on

 

I forgot to update. I removed the coil pack cover, and noticed the problem. I had inadvertantly disconnected a coil pack. Let me explain: Seems the person who previously owned the car wasnt a perfectionist. Both of the male ends of the wire harness' (that leads into the coil packs) had been snipped off. They were replaced by common female electical connectors that can be purchased at the hardware store. So each of the 3 wires leading into each of the coil packs had one of these connectors crimped onto it. I might say the connection isnt very sturdy, nor is it very professional (Ha!). I should post a photo for laughs, but its gettin late. Oh, where do I purchase an ample replacement male end (or two) for the defiled wire harness? Thanks for caring.