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So I was at the track last weekend and pretty much spent the entire time trying to get the car running properly. Kept having different intermittent issues. Sometimes car would idle okay but immediately die if you got revs over 2500. Other times it'd idle and rev and sitting still fine but die if you tried driving. Other times it'd idle and drive fine but hesitate on shifts if you got into boost. Sometimes if would fry the ignition fuse and die, other times it'd stay running. Sometimes it would throw crank and cam codes, other times they'd clear themselves and not come back for hours.
We spent most of saturday throwing parts at it and scratching our heads. Swapped plugs twice, checked resistance on all the ign coils, checked the fuel pump, checked the cam sensor, checked the MAF and the O2 sensor, checked wiring harnesses, pulled the dash to check the wiring inside the cabin.
After all the troubleshooting I was (still am) 95% sure it's the crank sensor. There was a small click sound coming from the accessory drive but we originally wrote it off as a pulley bearing going bad. After I got home I tore into the car to check the crank sensor and low and behold the click sound is the trigger wheel hitting the crank sensor.
I still need to check endplay on the crank but the motor has been running healthy and I don't expect the thrust bearing to be damaged at all. I just find it odd that out of the blue the crank trigger would start contacting the sensor. I thought maybe a piece of debris got into the timing cover but there wasn't anything in there. Timing is still perfectly as I set it when I put the motor together.
I think I could get away with just bending the trigger plate flat again but I'm not chancing it and going to replace the sensor and the trigger. I had a friend recommend swapping the spacer behind the trigger that replaces the balance shaft gear for the balance shaft gear as the gear clamps more of the trigger plate area than the small spacer so I'll probably do that as well.
Has anyone else had an issue with the crank trigger hitting the sensor? I've only been able to find one other instance of it here.
Sounds like the block is done. Saw a video of this and the issue was crankwalk.
I'm skeptical it's a crank endplay issue because usually you'll get a different/moving clutch engagement from the crank moving. Clutch feels totally fine on the car.
I've seen it twice. Once was simply there was too much thrust, thrust bearing was smoked.
The other one the flywheel had fallen off twice. The flywheel flange was no longer flat. So it was vibrating pretty bad. It ****ed up all the front drive stuff and the crank snout, basically making the stack height smaller as the parts micro machined each other down from the vibration.
Gotcha, yeah well figured you were already in there so would be far more convenient than dropping the trans. Well, fingers crossed bc man you've not been having the best luck it seems.
Gotcha, yeah well figured you were already in there so would be far more convenient than dropping the trans. Well, fingers crossed bc man you've not been having the best luck it seems.
It's all part of playing the racecar game. If the motor's toasted, the motor's toasted 🤷*♂️ I can get it rebuilt in a week or two and running again if I drop everything.
Should be low enough if you have the passenger mount off, and then loosen the front bolts (at the core support) from the north/south bar. Easy peasy.
Yup, that's exactly what I did. Sensor is out, just need to scoop up a new sensor and trigger wheel. Gonna try to get to autobahn next weekend with the car.
Threw a new crank sensor and trigger plate on tonight. Also replaced the balance shaft spacer with the stock sprocket to get better contact on the trigger plate. Still doing the same thing, trigger plate is rubbing the inside of the sensor.
Oh mannn hope its not...can you check endplay on the timing side or do you have to drop the trans?
