I have an 03 Ranger with 350K on it. I drive about 600 miles a week. About 6 months ago I had my first issue with it shutting down. As I was powering up a steep hill, ht engine simply cut out for split second, as if the there no ignition at all making the truck studder very abruptly but for just a split second. Then last week it happened again, only it kept happening. It would run and stop, run and stop jerking and lurching all over the road. I towed it to the ,mechanic and he initially though it was the coil, but no dice. He then tried to replace the cam position sensor and this where it gets weird. The truck runs fine while the cam sensor is unplugged, but continues so "hick-up" as my mechanic calls it while it is plugged in. He is a t a loss and recommends that I just drive with the sensor unplugged since it seems to work fine that way. Any thoughts?

 

Welcome to the forum

With Cam sensor unplugged there should be a CEL(Check engine light).

Check all the code numbers, write them down
Did your mechanic get code before the swap of the sensor, if so see if you can get them, exact code number not english translation

Did he replace the whole Cam sensor unit, the synchronizer and sensor, or just the sensor?

2003 cam sensor will only have 2 wires, it is a Variable Reluctance sensor, this means it generates its own power, AC Voltage, like Crank sensor and Speed sensors
So they can be tested with a volt meter set to AC Volts.
Unplug sensor if it was plugged in, hook up volt meter to the 2 plugs on sensor, start engine.
Should see a steady voltage at steady engine RPMs, rev engine a few times and watch voltage go up and back down, then hold RPMs steady at say 2,000rpm, voltage should also stay steady.

There is no "this is what the voltage should read", it is used for Frequency not voltage by the computer, it times the fuel injectors, the cam sensor tells computer when each cylinders intake valve is opening so it can open that injector, this is for better MPG, most of the fuel goes into the cylinder vs coating the inside of the intake.

Without the Cam sensor computer will run Batch Fire, on a V6 that means it will open 3 injectors at the same time, then the other 3 on the next cycle, which keeps intake full of air/fuel mix, one step up from how a carburetor worked, and MPG will drop slightly, not a big drop just less efficient than Sequential fuel injection

 

Thanks you for all the information.

My mechanic said the codes were all for missing. Individual and multiple cylinder misfires. And he replaced just the sensor " I believe" not the syncro.

I have been driving it with the cam sensor unplugged for the last 2 days. I did manage to make it "hick-up" once when revs were at about 3200RPM, and then I tried again shortly after and it happened again right at about 3200RPM.
This leads me to believe that my mechanic is just didn't realize what was prompting the issue, and it appears to be RPMs, and I believe now that the cam sensor has little or nothing to do with it.
I did notice a odd noise while it "hick-ups" this time though. I had heard it previously, but it sounded like a belt slipping so I figured it was just related to the engine shuttering.
This time the sound was definitely not a normal belt slip. There was a significant "chirping" sound but from inside the cab it sure sounded like it was coming from the back side of the engine. Almost like I could hear it through the windshield defrost vents.
Could it be the timing belt? Might that make the chirping sound, and only show a misfire code?

 

You posted in 3.0l forum so I was basing info on a 3.0l V6, which doesn't have a timing belt

"chirping" is the Cam Synchronizer