How to Start a Car with a Bad Crankshaft Sensor & What will a bad crankshaft position sensor do

Last updated on June 28th, 2023 at 05:16 pm

We are talking about how to start a car with a bad crankshaft sensor and what will a bad crankshaft position sensor do to your car engine. If your crankshaft sensor is bad and your car won’t start, then this post on how to start a car with a bad crankshaft sensor will guide you from start to finish. This a step by step guide of what to do to get the car started again.

Also, read this other article to see if it safe to drive with a bad camshaft sensor

We also are going to look at what is the function of a crankshaft sensor and it is located.

How to start a car with a bad crankshaft sensor

What will a bad crankshaft position sensor do

A car crankshafts position sensor(CPS) according to SAE International is a device or Magnetic sensor which is used in the internal combustion engine for both diesel and petrol vehicles to monitor the position or rotating speed of the car crankshaft.

The crankshafts position sensor(CPS) senses the position of 4- teeth-equal separate 90° apart on a toothed ring attached to the crankshaft.

When the crankshafts position sensor is bad or not working well, then it will calculate an incorrect position and speed of the vehicle. This wrong calculation can lead to serious engine damage that might cost so must to fix and can even require replacement of the engine.

Though I will be showing you in a bit how to start a car with a bad crankshaft sensor, I do not recommend you running your car with a bad crankshafts position sensor even when you can still start the car.

You are simply going to get the car more damaged. I suggest you contact your mechanic if you notice a crankshaft problem and have him diagnose and repair the CPS issue before you continue driving your car.

However, before you get the car fixed you might still want to start the car while you get ready for hiring a mechanic and below are the steps on how to start a car with a bad crankshaft sensor, but first lets look at what will a bad crankshaft position sensor do and where is my crankshaft position sensor located?

Where is my crankshaft position sensor located?

Crankshafts position sensor(CPS) location is different for various cars, but in most case, it is usually located very close to the crankshaft, which means is in front of the vehicle under the engine. On some occasion, the CPS can be located at the back or rear of the engine and sometimes the side of the engine.

When the crankshafts position sensor(CPS) measures the speed of the clutch flywheel to ascertain crankshaft speed, then it is most likely to be around transmission bell house of the car.

Steps On How to Start a Car with a Bad Crankshaft Sensor

So to start a car with a bad crankshafts sensor, you need to follow the steps below. If your car CPS has prevented your vehicle from starting on the normal way, in most case it is because the car has lost fuel to the engine.

In this case, you will need to have the item below to start your car if it is just a minor crankshaft sensor problem.

The item you will need for this.

Starting Fluid

So when you have got the above items, you need to do perform below steps:

Step 1

Starting with the engine starting fluid, you want to locate the crankshaft sensor (see above how to find CPS location).

Step 2

Unplug the sensor plug

Step 3

Spray then starting fluid in the opening.

Step 4

Go back to your steering and try to start your car by turning on the ignition keys. If the car starts and later turned off by itself, then it means the car has lost fuel to the engine. That mean fuel is not getting to the engine, so you will need to check your fuel pump.

If the car did not even start at all, then it most likely it a spark plug issue.

You will have to watch the video above to see how to change you fuel and spark plug to able to start your car again. Or you can this other post on changing and resolving spark plug related engine start problems

Next: How to check if camshaft position sensor is bad

So for this next approach, you want to test CPS to see how damaged it has gone, here is what to do.

Step1

Find the ignition coils in front of the car engine.

Step 2

Remove the number 4 and number 1 of the ignition terminals

Step 3

You now have to crank the engine over. You will see spark-jump between both ignition terminals. if you did not see a spark, then that means the fault on crankshaft position sensor is really bad and you may not able to start the car without replacing or repairing the crankshafts. In this case, you will have to consult your mechanic.

Conclusion on How to start a car with a bad crankshaft Sensor

I will not recommend you drive a long distance with a bad crankshaft and that is because it could cause more damage to your car engine and can render it nonfunctional totally. I hope this article on how to start a car with a bad crankshaft sensor helped you? please feel free to share and bookmark this post. This will come in handy when you either NEED an answer or solution to Crankshaft Sensor issue or your friend and relation will need it.

Read This: 10w40 vs 5w40 which one is better for your and How Bad is it to Drive with a Bad Camshaft

Jeffery Ekweghi

Hi dear, my name is Jeffery Ekweghi, and I am a certified mechanic and autobody parts technician. I created this site to share my expertise and experience with car lovers looking to resolve their car-related issues. I am certified in private cars and heavy-duty commercial vehicles. I have worked as a mechanic since 2015 and have experience in vehicle brands like Subaru, Jeep, Toyota, TATA, BMW, Mazda, Honda, Nissan, Kia, TVs, and Others; however, I primarily specialize in Toyota vehicles.