no , that's a big no no .Don't go aftermarket there , you are to start a witch hunt of problems .So you are Europe right ? me too and unfortunately here in Europe we can;t get the VNE automotive oem sensor that fcp offers .So it's either bmw oe with that ridiculus cost ( check hubauer.de ) ,or buy the vne from fcp , or try to score one used , but make sure its the updated part , like I did

 

Hmmm, I’d check the wiring from the sensor to the engine computer (DME). Sometimes oil wicks up the cable when the sensor’s o-ring leaks.

 

You might be right. I replaced the vanos gasket (oil leak) recently, and I noticed the intake vanos plug was a little loose. I'll check it tomorrow, as the engine was really hot when I checked it.
Could be a link between vanos and cam sensor errors. It was "intake camshaft sensor: implausible signal" btw.

I have always used aftermarket and have had no problems. Having said that I do change them regularly like you normally would a spark plug.
In other words I don't sit around waiting for them to fail.

if you go aftermarket, what brand do you use?

 

Even some of my peers have used better aftermarket sensors
After chasing their tails, a dealer sensor fixes the car.
Some have luck, some don't.

I can't imagine driving south and getting stuck near the Perififrique, on a heavy traffic day because of a bad sensor.

 

Never ,just like fuel pump and maf

 

Never, especially a cam sensor. BTDT with a Meyle sensor yrs ago. Not worth the trouble, just go Genuine.

 

I have always used aftermarket and have had no problems. Having said that I do change them regularly like you normally would a spark plug.
In other words I don't sit around waiting for them to fail.

 

Lucas, The Prince of Darkness.

 

I dunno. Maybe you ain't been fitting them properly.

 

My question: is it worth trying an aftermarket sensor? Febi, Delphi, Valeo, Hella, Metzger, ...

honestly over the decades I have seen enough horror stories when it comes to aftermarket CPS to say no. OE or Genuine BMW only on this one.

“worth” is up to each individual. so that’s up to you if you want to take that chance.

besides that, I agree and wait to see if code persists before changing out.

 

“The installation of aftermarket sensors is strictly verboten!”
@markusmarkus

 

I’ve learnt the hard way that this is true. Before I learned my lesson I did install a Febi exhaust cam sensor. It is still working after about 6 months. Fingers crossed…

 

Personally, I just pull OEM sensors from the junkyard.

What could go wrong???

t

 

Viola'

 

many thanks for the input. Anyone know what the Genuine brand is?

Also: big chance it won't be needed as the vanos plug looks a little loose. Gonna check it once my engine is cooled off. Didn't have time to check it yesterday.

 

Anyone know what the Genuine brand is?

Siemens VDO possibly? The OE crank sensor is SVDO so maybe....

 

When I was younger, I used many Delphi, BeckArnley, Bremi, Febi, Meyle, Gates, Echlin
and even Standard Motor Products sensors, parts and products.

When I was younger, these parts came from countries like the United States, Great Britain, Italy, Japan and Germany.
Often, when you opened the box, there was an OE or OEM part in there.

Now, if I buy abovementioned parts, there's a pretty high chance that the country of origin will be China.
THAT correlates to a pretty high chance of premature part failure. Directly.

So I now don't buy them for things that are in any way hard to fix or are likely to strand me. Because they have.
Will quality improve? Depends entirely on what's going on in THIS country (and the EU) regarding ecopolitics that
I understand not very much, but enough to be disgusted.

There.

THAT'S why aftermarket parts have become verboten. It's a quality control issue. And it's a problem
with the SELLERS, not necessarily the SUPPLIERS. The SELLERS specify what they want in the
box, the suppliers just make it for them.

t
greed uber alles.

 

UPDATE

So I found out my intake vanos plug was not fully connected. Plugged it in, works. Read the vanos status in INPA and everything seemed fine. So then I went to clear my errors. Funny enough, AFTER clearing my errors, my vanos went limp again. The "intake camshaft: signal implausible" came back instantly, and my vanos values were frozen once again. This happened AFTER I cleared my errors, as before my vanos worked fine. This is really weird ...

 

I replaced my intake cam sensor with a very cheap aftermarket (it was german, something like hamburg technic?) when it went bad at around 8 years old. The aftermarket one only lasted a year. Replaced again with OE and it is still going strong ten years later. I had similar results with the variable resistor for the fan control. I'm pretty strongly in the camp to go high quality on a part if it is a pain to replace or might leave you stuck somewhere.

 

OP: Remove the two solenoids, clean them, and clean the pistons that they actuate.

 

I took the risk and bought a Metzger OEM-quality one. First thing I noticed was that when I pulled the old one out, it had some silver/grey blinking stuff on it. Probably some minor metal pieces. I wonder if this was blocking the signal from the camshaft and if the sensor itself was actually faulty or not. I had a broken one which simply gave the fault that it was broken/no signal, but this one said "signal not plausible". Not sure if I can keep it around as a spare one or not. The problem also started right after I did an engine flush and oil change right after that. I did the flush because I rebuilt my engine about a year ago and cleaned it as well as I could (was lots of sludge and burnt shit in there), but thought a flush wouldn't hurt for the small parts I couldn't reach.
Right after that my camshaft sensor gave issues, so maybe this is some minor shit that came loose because of the flush.
Also, the Metzger one had a thicker end than the OEM one.

Either way, new sensor put in, read the VANOS signal with INPA, and everything works fine! Happy so far. Only thing I forgot was to order a new gasket for the VANOS-thing that I had to undo. I can predict it's gonna leak, but gonna order the seal first thing next week.

 

Hopefully the sensor lasts