2nd Gen V6 Crank Position Sensor

Good morning, does anyone have a step-by-step guide on how to replace the crankshaft position sensor on a 2nd gen V6 Tacoma? My grandfather has an 07 Tacoma that needs this replaced and I would like to do this for him if I can so he doesn't have to bring it to the shop. Wanted to see if anyone has experience on this subject before I go and buy a service manual. Thanks for the help!

 

Hi, John. Welcome to TW.

There’s a write up of the procedure in this message thread. But before you dive into the repair, it might be worth discussing what codes were thrown and what diagnostics led to identifying this component as needing to be replaced. There are quite a few message threads here mentioning how uncommon it is for the crankshaft position sensor itself needing to be replaced.

 

Thank you so much this is very helpful! I believe he had it diagnosed at auto zone and that's what they told him it needed, but I would also like to get my own scan tool to double check. Do you have any scan tools in mind that you would recommend?

 

It is located behind the A/C compressor mounting bracket (which is also the belt tensioner) so you have to unbolt the compressor and put it to the side then remove the bracket/tensioner.

 

Really, and an inexpensive wired unit from Amazon will suffice for most basic needs. The phone apps that get mentioned the most here are OBD Fusion and Torque Pro along with a Bluetooth dongle. But you could have your grandfather go back and get the codes pulled again at AutoZone. Once you get the codes, post them back here along with some additional details about the truck (mileage, 4- or 6-cylinder, any issues besides the check engine light) and we can go from there.

 

To be clear reading a code is not a complete diagnosis, parts stores do that for free because it allows them to sell more parts.
There's much more to diagnosing and verifying a part is bad than just reading a code.
That being said if you are confident the crank sensor is bad I would go OEM only due to the location and time involved in changing it.