GLS Hybrid Engine Stalling Camshaft Sensor Issue

My 2020 Mercedes GLS hybrid is giving me fits. It's got about 62526 km on it. Lately, it's been starting rough, and then the engine just stalls out, especially when I'm idling. Of course, the check engine light is on. I pulled the codes, and it's pointing to a defective camshaft sensor. From what I've read, it could be the encoder wheel on the camshaft itself that's gone bad. Has anyone dealt with this? I'm trying to figure out if this is something I can tackle myself, or if I'm looking at a costly trip to the shop. I've also heard that a faulty crankshaft sensor can cause similar issues, so I'm wondering if I should check that first?

4 comment(s)

Oh man, that sounds familiar! I have a GLS too, and I had something like that happen a while back. The car stalling and the check engine light were driving me crazy! Engine misfire, that's what it felt like. I'm no mechanic, but I remember reading about the camshaft sensor being a pain. What's an encoder wheel? Is that hard to get to? I hope it's not too expensive!

The encoder wheel is the part that the camshaft sensor reads to determine the position of the camshaft. I believe it is part of the camshaft. That's what worries me. How was your issue resolved? Was it just the camshaft sensor, or was it something more involved? I'm trying to get a sense of what I'm potentially facing here. Did the error code also point to a camshaft position sensor?

Okay, encoder wheel part of the camshaft sounds bad! I don't remember exactly what the error code was, but yeah, it was something with the camshaft sensor. Honestly, I took it straight to a workshop. I didn't want to mess anything up. They fixed it pretty quick, but it wasn't cheap. You should probably take it to someone who knows what they're doing.

Thanks for the advice! I was hoping it would be a simple fix, but it sounds like I'm better off leaving it to the professionals. I took it to a workshop, and they confirmed it was the camshaft sensor and the encoder wheel, just as I suspected. The repair cost me 695€, which is painful, but at least it's running smoothly now. I appreciate you sharing your experience!

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