One of the most frequent questions we are asked here at Pro Street is “where is my camshaft position sensor located?” or “How can I test my camshaft position sensor?”. It’s a fair question considering the number of 2JZGTE engine swaps there are out there, after all it’s still a production engine. Today well be looking at how to test your 2JZ Camshaft Position Sensor.
We’ve decided to take some time to take a look into this process on our own Project SC, in which we are removing the 2JZGE and swapping in a 2JZGTE from a 1997 Toyota Aristo. So let’s take a look at How To Test Your 2JZ Camshaft Position Sensor.
The camshaft position sensor is a 2 pin unit that is connected using a Delrin type weather proof connector, this sensor is located in your cylinder head.
The 2JZ is a tremendously stout engine with a legion of fans and followers most popularized here in the US by the Toyota Supra, one of the true Japanese Supercars. The 2JZGTE camshaft position sensor is a hall effect type sensor, and is located near the rear of your cylinder head.
When testing your camshaft position sensor, most people are looking for the reason as to why their car is not starting or has intermittent ignition problems. As the camshaft position sensor provides a real time positioning of the engine to the PCM, this is a very important reading for your vehicle.
This how to assumes you have good mechanical skill and are comfortable using a voltmeter, if you are unfamiliar with a voltmeter please ask someone to give you a hand.
First unplug your crank position sensor, for another look at where this sensor is located on your 2JZ, take a look at this picture
There are 2 operating temps that Toyota outlines when you are testing this unit, cold and hot operating ranges that will return a different value depending on the temp of the sensor at hand.
Cold Operating Temperature : from -10 degrees C to 50 degrees C ( 14 degree F to 122 degree F )
Hot Operating Temperature : from 50 degrees C to 100 degrees C ( 122 degree F to 212 degree F )
Disconnect the PCV rubber hose to give yourself some more operating room under the hood, and then disconnect the 2 pin connector that leads to the camshaft position sensor.
Using your ohmmeter, measure the resistance from one pin to the other by placing the red ( positive ) lead to one terminal and the negative ( black ) lead to the other.There are 2 manufacturers that are OES ( Original Equipment Suppliers ) for Toyota in regards to the camshaft position sensor.
One is NipponDenso and the other is Aisan, for more information on OES or OEM suppliers, check out our FAQ sheet on our OEMSPEC program.
Nippon Denso camshaft position sensor COLD – 835-1400Ω
Aisan camshaft position sensor COLD – 985-1600 Ω
Nippon Denso camshaft position sensor HOT – 1060-1645Ω
Aisan camshaft position sensor HOT – 1265-1890 Ω
Toyota specifies this part number as 90919-05007 and we do not recommend aftermarket of offshore versions of this sensor.
If your sensor falls outside of these operating ranges in resistance, then you must replace the camshaft position sensor in question with a new unit. Hopefully this guide has shown you How To Test Your 2JZ Camshaft Position Sensor, but we are always here to help with friendly people.
Have a question or a comment? Leave us one below.
Update for user Rio – 2JZ camshaft position sensor ECU wiring diagram
[…] harness connects to the cam angle sensors as well as the ignition coil and Manifold Absolute Pressure sensor and more. More often than not […]
Hi. Is the 2jzgte vvti camshaft position sensor the same as the non vvti?
Hi Juan, thanks for commenting and reading.
The only difference we know of between the 2JZGTE VVTI head and the non VVTI head is the shims and camshafts. The part number for the non VVTI 2JZGTE is 90919-05007, while the VVTI version is listed as 02960-00114. However if you are using a standalone, you can simply use the VVTI wheel as a camshaft reference. Check here for more info : http://my.prostreetonline.com/2013/11/21/2jz-sensor-guide-what-you-need-to-swap-a-2jzgte/
Hi this article really helped me out. Where can I Use the Vvti Cam Angle Sensor in my aem ems for the 2jz crank Signal?
Thanks pro street you guys rule
You can definitely use the cam angle sensor as a reference but will need some customization through your EMS before it can accept it. Did you purchase the AEM EMS from us?
hi guys very informative article . im running an aem infinty on my 1jz (Same cam position sensor as 2jz) and having some problems with aem reading signal from cam position sensor. do you know what voltage i should be getting at the sensor from the ecu ? im only getting 1.6volts with ign on and beilieve it should be higher?
thanks
Hi Rio, thanks for commenting on our 2JZ How To Guide.
You shouldn’t have a constant voltage from this sensor, are you using a stock Supra/Soarer harness for your AEM Infinity? Are you sure you are checking the G1 and G2 circuits? The 2JZ cam sensor is basically a hall effect sensor that picks up the high points on your intake camshaft. When the high point or the protrusion on the camshaft comes up to the sensor, it should cause the coil voltage to change. Are you getting a voltage fluctuation at either one of these camshaft sensors?
The best way to test it is to use a multimeter to measure the internal resistance like our guide shows. Between 985 – 1.600 of resistance when cold.
Sounds like an awesome swap! Let us know how it turns out! Thanks for reading
not using the stock harness its a brand new harness built for the aem infinity. it only utilizes one of the cam position sensors (not using back one) ive measured the resistence in the cold and it checks out at 1000 ohms. the voltage im talking about is out of the ecu to the sensor which is giving the 1.6volts should i try to turn the camshaft and look for voltae fluctuations. the weird thing is the car was running fine before and all of a sudden stopped getting a cam signal my tuner thinks it was supposed to be 5volts out from the ecu but is not sure. ive also swapped the back sensor to the front to try that
Weird well I would tend to agree with your tuner, there should be 5 volts at this sensor. I would measure PIN 26 on your E9 ECU harness for a 5 volt signal. I’ve gone ahead and uploaded an image to show you the 2JZ camshaft position sensor ECU wiring.
Hi John, just reading the comments from your article as im having issues with my car firing. It turns but wont fire. Fuel is pumping but do not seem to be getting a spark. Have checked cam sensors as per your article and all okay. I have the AEM V2 which i think only uses the front sensor. I just wanted to clarify a point that Rio made. When check the voltage to the cam sensor terminal to I need to turn the car over so that its sending a signal? Many thanks, Andrew
Hi Andrew,
I would try putting the key to the ON position, and manually rotating the engine by hand ( remove your spark plugs first )
Check your AEM ECU by using the datalogger, and make sure your trigger signal is coming in clearly. I would also check the values for your other sensors, if you see a weird value it could stop your 2JZ from firing the plugs.
Hello, just a few questions.
Can these test be performed while the parts still installed on the engine?
How can you tell which of the manufacture part is used?
Also how do you test the 2 differnt heat ranges?
Lastly do the questions I posted apply to the crankshaft sensor testing as well? Noticed it was similar when it came to testing the seniors for both cam and crank
I apologize if I had missed those information in the article written. Read through it several times and can’t seem to figure out those issues.
Thank you
Hi Michael, thanks for reading.
yes these tests can be performed while the 2JZ is in the engine bay. If you take the camshaft position sensor off the engine, you should be able to see the part number that will correspond to the manufacturer in question. Also there should be markings identifying the 2JZ CAS and who made it.
Testing the 2 heat ranges is simple as long as you use the guide. Make sure to properly read through the guide to see what voltage to expect for a good or bad reading of your 2JZ camshaft position sensor. Thanks for reading