P0016: Crankshaft Position — Camshaft Position Correlation (Bank 1 Sensor A)
Do not keep driving
Stop driving. On an interference engine, timing that has slipped once can slip further and put pistons into valves. Have the vehicle recovered rather than driven to the workshop.
What this code means
The crankshaft and camshaft signals disagree about where the engine actually is. This is the code that most often means real mechanical trouble rather than a sensor fault: a chain that has jumped a tooth, a stretched chain, a failed tensioner, or a phaser that has come apart internally. Replacing the camshaft sensor because a correlation code appeared is one of the most common wasted repairs in diagnostics — verify the mechanical timing with the engine at top dead centre before buying anything.
Likely causes
Start here
- Stretched timing chain · specialist
- Worn timing chain tensioner or guide · specialist
- Timing chain or belt out of alignment · specialist
- Worn camshaft phaser · specialist
Less common
- Low or dirty engine oil · easy
- Faulty camshaft position sensor · moderate
- Faulty crankshaft position sensor · moderate
Rare
- Damaged reluctor or tone ring · specialist
Symptoms
Components involved
Information, not instruction
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Have anything you intend to act on checked by a trained person against the manufacturer's own procedure for your vehicle. Nothing here replaces that procedure.
Community experience
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What makes one worth reading:
- The car — make, model, year and engine. The same fault behaves differently on each.
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