Stuck crankshaft position sensor FIXED!

[SamPerron]

Hey everybody!

Yesterday I attempted to fix the CEL P0336 code that was preventing me from driving my newly acquired 2005 Legacy GT. It went very smoothly until I got to the (to my naive mind) easiest part of the fix: removing the old and putting back a new sensor.

The sensor was properly stuck to the block, so stuck in fact that the little plastic housing at the top broke off the main "metal" part of the sensor. I was in disbelief, my first job on the car and I had no idea how to get the rest out.

Well, the final solution was to gut everything inside the sensor (a long copper wire, some o-rings and a magnet), hammer down a small flat-head screwdriver between the wall of the block and what remained of the sensor. This caused the metal casing to bend inwards and allowed me to continue prying it with long-nosed vice-grips.

When I finally got the rest out, I took a dremel to the cylinder wall in the block to remove any rust that was left and finished the job. The car is now running perfectly.

Just wanted to share my experience, in case it could help somebody else!

Edited November 8, 2023 by SamPerron