Wiring Question - Cam Position Sensor

[S550IngotGT]

I broke the connector going to the 2-wire cam position sensor on the exhaust side at the rear of the driver's side cylinder head. The wires came out of the broken connector so I don't know which way they go. The passenger side wiring is impossible to see.

I ordered a new WPT-986 connector pigtail, but I am not sure if the orientation of the 2 wires in the connector matters or not. See photo below. Does anyone know what side the grey / orange stripe wire goes into the connector on?

If someone has their fuel injection harness out of the car, perhaps you could check this connector for me and post a photo of it. It has silver heat wrap leading up to the black connector. Thanks.

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[ORRadtech]

If you ordered the pigtail from Ford there's a pretty decent chance the wire colors will be the same.
Failing that, the new connector will have the pin positions labeled on it (they're often very small but will be there) and you can wire it according to the diagram you posted above. Grey/Orange to #1, Green/Violet to #2.

 

[Skye]

The position of the wires will matter. The voltage is DC, which is polarity-sensitive.

I looked at this connector and found several examples on-line. In each example, the colors were oriented the same.

Taking the connector and looking at the port end, what the sensor pins feed into, orient the connector so there is a "hump" on top, with the pin ports left-right/horizontal. On the left-side of the connector, the key should have a squared shape. Looking at the wires coming out of the back, in each example I saw, the ground wire was coming from the left side, the keyed/squared side. Pairing with your diagram above, this would be the green/violet wire, the ground.

Google "Ford FPT-986 connector" and look at images on-line. All the examples I found, the green/black/violet wire was on the left (if facing the ports) or the right (if looking from the rear of the connector. In both left or right, the ground was associated with the squared side of the connector.

For the wiring harness itself, if you cannot currently see the colors, you'll have to strip or cut back some of the shrink wrap. I realize this could be a PITA, but it's the only way I'm aware of you'll be able to confirm which wire is which. An alternative might be to turn the car onto accessory mode and then use a voltmeter or light to see which side is "hot" or has voltage on it; this should be the grey, orange, white or red lead of the pigtail.

If others could proof my comments, it'd provide still more confidence to you. Yet another alternative, return to the dealer, explain yourself, see if they could chat up a mechanic real quick. Or they might know from their own experience.

 

[S550IngotGT]

Wow. Thanks Skye. You are quite the detective. Much appreciated.

 

[Skye]

These are two examples.

BLK/GRN is often used as a ground. I've read that Ford can sometimes use violet as a ground color.

You can see the colors and how oriented in these photos.

https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/394240423032

https://www.partsgeek.com/s8w2djq-ford-f150-engine-camshaft-position-sensor-connector.html

Good Luck.

 

[S550IngotGT]

I ended up getting the wires in the proper position through trial and error, and using alligator clip jumper wires. Once I got them right, the CEL went out and the car idled a lot smoother. Thanks everyone for the help.

 

[iram]

I ended up getting the wires in the proper position through trial and error, and using alligator clip jumper wires. Once I got them right, the CEL went out and the car idled a lot smoother. Thanks everyone for the help.

can you tell me the orientation

i have this exact issue. My vct/vvt is completely off due to a circuit fault. &i noticed the wire to the sensor is pinched & pulled out.
Did you use a lift to get to it? Theyre a mf’er to get to from the engine bay.

 

[S550IngotGT]

I removed the brace connecting the firewall to the shock towers. Then I removed the fuel line from the plastic retainer on the firewall and rotated the retainer 180 degrees out of the way. Then removed the hydraulic line from the bracket at the bottom of the brake booster and moved it out of the way. It’s pretty easy to reach the exhaust camshaft position sensor on rear of driver cylinder head from the top this way.

 

[iram]

I removed the brace connecting the firewall to the shock towers. Then I removed the fuel line from the plastic retainer on the firewall and rotated the retainer 180 degrees out of the way. Then removed the hydraulic line from the bracket at the bottom of the brake booster and moved it out of the way. It’s pretty easy to reach the exhaust camshaft position sensor on rear of driver cylinder head from the top this way.

And how were the wires oriented

green wire On toptowards hood or towards ground, firewall, or engine

does that make sense? i need to know the orientation of the wires themselves in the connector to the sensor.

 

[S550IngotGT]

The gray wire with orange stripe is up closer to the hood when the connector is installed on the cam sensor.

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