The dreaded P0017 CODE... Help me pleeeease !

LOWCLASS21

Original poster
Member
Dec 3, 2013
7
First off Thank you for welcoming me into your community. Second shout out to MAY03LT for you helpful youtube vids. I am sure they have helped countless people.

As for me, Well I have the ever so famous P0017 code and I am running out of options and patience on fixing it.

2005 Trailblazer ls
4.2 L I6
80,000 miles
well maintained

All started with Crankshaft position sensor code
replaced that and cam shaft position sensor together and bam !! ]
p0017 code came about.
since then I have brought it to the dealership without much success at this time.
They changed out the cam actuator solenoid and still I get a ses light
they now want to check for play in the timing (im being told is craziness with 80,000 miles)
about $150 to look and $2,600 to replace if needed
they also said they may have to check for play in the crank.... also hard to believe with the miles
I am at a loss here.
should I pull the pcm fuses or even replace the pcm ?
the tb runs great !!!!
when I clear the code it will stay off for good UNTIL the next restart comes right back on

please help I am already past due on inspection and I park at a sheriffs office for work lol
 

CaptainXL

Member
Dec 4, 2011
2,445
Really the only things that are left is the timing assembly and Camshaft Phaser. Could possibly be wiring as well.
 

Sparky

Member
Dec 4, 2011
12,927
Did you use OEM or aftermarket sensors? Some of the aftermarkets are finicky.

Makes me wonder since you got the code after replacing the sensors.

I saw a report from a Colorado guy that his code went away after an oil change. Kinda weird.
 

LOWCLASS21

Original poster
Member
Dec 3, 2013
7
OEM on the cam shaft actuator solenoid .... and aftermarket on the cam and crank position sensors ... local parts store. I am going to pull the cam shaft actuator solenoid and take a peak at the screens and condition in a couple days I will add an oil change to that. thought of ordering another solenoid from parts geek .com just incase the one I have is no good.
 

snappr

Member
Dec 11, 2013
4
LOWCLASS21 said:
OEM on the cam shaft actuator solenoid .... and aftermarket on the cam and crank position sensors ... local parts store. I am going to pull the cam shaft actuator solenoid and take a peak at the screens and condition in a couple days I will add an oil change to that. thought of ordering another solenoid from parts geek .com just incase the one I have is no good.

For me it ended up being the Camshaft Phaser. I cleaned it a few times and it would stay off for a week or two, then I finally replaced it. I now change my oil sooner and the code has stayed away for months now.
 

LOWCLASS21

Original poster
Member
Dec 3, 2013
7
Cam phaser? Is the solenoid located on the side of the motor that you have move the power steering pump to remove? ...Just may try this .. let me know and TY
 

snappr

Member
Dec 11, 2013
4
Yep, that is it! You may want to do an oil change and then clean it. See if it doesn't keep the light off for a couple weeks or longer. I cleaned mine a few times till. Then I just replaced the cam phaser and haven't had an issue since.

I know it sounds crazy about the oil, but oil passes through it. Once you see the phaser out, you'll see what I mean.

Also, If oil is passing through the phaser to the connector/wire harness, you need to replace it regardless.

Good luck!
 

CaptainXL

Member
Dec 4, 2011
2,445
LOWCLASS21 said:
Cam phaser? Is the solenoid located on the side of the motor that you have move the power steering pump to remove? ...Just may try this .. let me know and TY

No, that is the Camshaft Position Actuator Solenoid (CPAS). Tons of info on this site about it and how to change it.

The phaser is located under the camshaft cover which is tons more work to get at.

Just flush the engine a number of times then change the CPAS if it isn't new or ACDelco. If the connector has oil in it then replace the CPAS and clean out the connector. Go from there.
 

LOWCLASS21

Original poster
Member
Dec 3, 2013
7
snappr said:
Yep, that is it! You may want to do an oil change and then clean it. See if it doesn't keep the light off for a couple weeks or longer. I cleaned mine a few times till. Then I just replaced the cam phaser and haven't had an issue since.

I know it sounds crazy about the oil, but oil passes through it. Once you see the phaser out, you'll see what I mean.

Also, If oil is passing through the phaser to the connector/wire harness, you need to replace it regardless.

Good luck!

Welp... Changed oil... took out cam solenoid and cleaned it .... No luck grrrr.... The dealership changed this out last year trying to fix this problem and code never went away then either... any chance it could be a bad part? should I spend the $50 to get a new one and replace it?
 

snappr

Member
Dec 11, 2013
4
I unplugged the battery and let it sit to reset the ses light each time.

Someone else will have to chime in on whether it should go off on its own or not.
 

LOWCLASS21

Original poster
Member
Dec 3, 2013
7
I pulled the PCM fuses ... light came back on .... I unplugged the battery ...light came back on ...I cleared codes with code reader .... and guess what...light came back on .............aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh
 

The_Roadie

Lifetime VIP Donor
Member
Nov 19, 2011
9,957
Portland, OR
It's likely the cam phaser, and it's time to pay for an accurate diagnosis.
 

LOWCLASS21

Original poster
Member
Dec 3, 2013
7
Well I'd like to thank you all for your help. I gave up on the trailblazer. As much as I loved it, I took amazing care of it and still had problem after problem. The dealer said this problem was down to 3 different things

replace the cam phaser

replace the timing chain

replace the engine


solution ... Moving to the TAHOE forums . proud owner of a chevy Tahoe z71 :smile:

good luck to you all and thx again for you help.:wootwoot:
 

TollKeeper

Supporting Donor
Member
Dec 3, 2011
8,047
Brighton, CO
With the specific sensors he replaced, I would think he just needed a CASE relearn..
 

LOWCLASS21

Original poster
Member
Dec 3, 2013
7
TollKeeper said:
With the specific sensors he replaced, I would think he just needed a CASE relearn..

Yeah, I had mentioned that to the dealer as well. They said there was not need for a relearn or flash.
 

bobdec

Member
Apr 19, 2013
233
P0017 says with variable exhaust cam was commanded to 0 retard for 16 seconds the CAM and Crank positions were greater than 18* out of sync. Since there was no P0014 DTC that says the variable CAM test of actuating the CAM retard and testing results of all positions completed sucessfully. So the actuator test passed, but the PCM now sees out of sync between the crank and exaust CAM with VCP at 0. Problem looks mechanical... actuator is not where it should be when at 0 retard, or the chain has slop, reluctors or sensors not aligning correctly. Scoping and comparing both CAM and Crank sensors would help isolate, but that's advanced tech stufff. Crank relearn tells the PCM how far apart the crank teeth pulses are at specific RPM's. PCM remembers the data and it's used to detect short, small speed changes between crank pulses that are caused by a misfife.

Here is a explanation of the DTC P0017.....

Detects out of range
base engine cam
timing

VCP commanded to 0 for 16 sec
Engine running

Crank degrees as compared to
cam degrees is > 74.7 degrees
or < 56.7 degrees
 

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