I have an '88 Vanden Plas which has what seems to be a bad crank sensor. It gets no reading on the tachometer as it's being cranked to start it. Before I go out and replace it with a brand new one (over $300), I've been looking into dropping in a used one to make sure all the bugs are worked out of the vehicle as it's currently just a project. My concern is that the connector for it is different than the latter years ( Round connector with red,blue and black wires) and was wondering if one of the latter three wire connectors can be used if I splice my old connector onto the new(used) crank sensor? Has anyone had any luck changing/swapping connectors out and got their replacement sensor working? What years did they use the round style plug for the connector,was it 88 and 89 only? I noticed a 91 with the square style connector but it also has the three (same colored) wires. The latter X300 sensors only seem to use two wires. Did they do away with the shielding wire or is it grounded through the sensor for the latter ones? Any help is appreciated. Thanks!

 

I think I did swap connectors one time and it worked fine. The 1992-1994 AJ6 had the triangle shaped connector but the wires are the same colors so I would buy a STANDARD MOTOR PRODUCTS PC489 {#DBC011501, DBC11501} Intermotor

or AIRTEX/WELLS 5S1791 {#2134307, DBC11501, SU4717}

They are both listed less than $100 on Rock Auto website.

The AJ16 connector is different and as you stated, the sensor has shorter wires and only has 2 wires so I guess the shield was deleted?? (funny, I just replaced a CKPS on a 1996 XJR today)

bob

 

Hi 95Leaper,

Rock Auto is out of the Airtex Wells model Bob mentioned, but check with our forum sponsors SNG Barratt, Coventry West and Jagbits. For example SNG Barratt has three options from $48 to $138, any of which should work - just confirm with them that the connector will be correct for your car.

Regarding the shield, the electrical schematics for all XJ40s, X300s and X308s show that the CPS/CKPS wiring is shielded, but at some point the aftermarket sensor manufacturers either stopped adding the shield or stopped connecting it at the electrical connector. The last one I installed had shielded cable, but the shield was not connected to a pin in the connector.

Cheers,

Don

 

Does anyone know which color wire contains the shielded wire? Is it the red,blue or black wire?

 

It's pretty obvious from Electrical Guide figure 31 ENGINE MANAGEMENT.

Did you check the guide?

Red and Blue should have some continuity but the White wire (might be Black in the sensor harness) should be open circuit.

It even shows it as a circle around the other 2 wires.

bob

 

Thanks Bob,sometimes I get sidetracked although I hate looking thru wiring diagrams,and I studied electrical when in my late teens. ;-)

 

Does anyone know if there are other applications/vehicles that use this sensor or is this particular one Jaguar specific?

 

The only application Rock Auto shows for that particular CPS is the '88-'91 Jaguar XJ6. I just checked the Airtex Wells catalog and that's the only application it shows as well.

Don

 

Hey,
I have just replaced one on my 94 XJ40 in the last 6 months, $150 from Autozone. Be careful replacing the sensor on the aluminum bracket. It is secures by one bolt to the aluminum bracket. When I replaced mine I striped the one bolt that secured it and had to get creative with some JB Weld. All is good now.
Dano

 

I actually got one thru my local Advance Auto for $100 and managed to get it the next morning. Still having issues not getting spark though. Checked my ignition coil and it seems to be within specs,so my next guess would be a faulty ignition module. Does anyone know if there's a way to test these?

 

With the new CPS are you getting approximately 200 rpm on the tachometer while cranking? If not, there may be a problem with the new CPS or with the CPS electrical connector. I had a problem with one or two pins backing out of the connector when I pressed the two halves together.

Have you checked for spark at the coil output? If you have spark there, the ignition amplifier module is OK. Suspect the king lead between the coil and distributor cap, or the cap and rotor.

If you have no spark at the coil, the only tests I know of for the ignition module are to check for correct voltages at the electrical connector and if the voltages are all there and you're sure the coil is good, then the module is suspect.

The coils seem to fail more often than the modules.

Cheers,

Don

 

Did a check again today and I'm not getting any reading on my tachometer during cranking. I tested the socket going to the crank sensor and am getting a reading of .06 from one terminal and .04 from the other. I measured the socket coming from the sensor and the sensor seems to be reading the correct ohms. It seems like all pins in the connectors are making a good contact. What am I missing here? Is there another test that can be done?

 

Hi 95Leaper,

Sorry for the delay in responding to this thread - you have multiple threads going, which is confusing.

What are the units of your 0.06 and 0.04 readings? Ohms? Milliohms? Volts? Millivolts?

What are the "correct ohms" you are measuring across the CPS terminals?

Cheers,

Don

 

If I remember correctly it was .06 and .04 volts and between 1350-1400 ohms from the sensor wires. I can double check the readings tomorrow but all seems to be correct according to what I have read.

 

Hey guys and gals,

In testing a no spark situation in my xj40 The CPS came up as a possibility after testing everything up to this. The specs call for an ohm test between the blue and red wire being 1300 to 1450. Mine came in at 1210. Do you think this would cause a no spark situation.

What are your thoughts?

 

Hi Pappajag,

Probably the most common cause of no spark is low battery voltage while cranking. If the voltage sags much below 11V while cranking the ECM will not trigger the ignition to fire.

A resistance of 1210 ohms is not too far out of spec to indict the CPS. But as mentioned earlier in this thread, a simple test is to watch the tachometer for a reading of around 200 rpm while cranking. If the tach needle stays at 0 rpm while cranking, suspect the CPS or its electrical connector or harness.

If the tachometer reads around 200 rpm while cranking, the ECM at least thinks the CPS is working, although the CPS could have an intermittent or temperature-dependent fault.

I assume you have checked the distributor cap and rotor, the king lead between the distributor and coil, and the coil itself for any signs of cracks or overheating? One of our members recently discovered his ignition amplifier had failed, but over the years that seems to have been rare.

Cheers,

Don

 

Make sure your battery has a full charge first,then start by checking at the ignition coil,moving on to the distributor cap and then the spark plug checking for spark. When I had no spark I suspected the crank sensor and replaced it with a new one. It turned out to be my ignition module. I wasn't receiving any reading on my tachometer with the bad ignition module. Has your module gotten wet for any reason? There's a chance it may have shorted out internally causing it to go faulty.

 

Most likely the battery. Even though its only a year old I had once left the lights on which drained it and its never been the same after that. I found a CPS at Barrett for 46.00 so I ordered that as well.All the other players check out and yes. I lost spark after a deep snow storm that left foot of snow on the hood which melted before I got back to the car. The car started and rolled forward in drive about a foot then power just cut off. Meaning the spark.It was like a switch was turned off. Never started again. That was before Christmas. I did switch out my ignition module with my xjs' which I know works and it made no difference. Put it back in my xjs and worked fine.