2014 jeep wrangler Sahara
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JK Newbie
Joined: Aug 2025
Posts: 1
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2014 jeep wrangler Sahara
Hello my names Mike I bought a 2014 jeep wrangler Sahara only has 90k on it! I bought it from a lady who bought it new but lost her license and hasn’t drove it for 4 years I bought it and the jeep fired right up and I drove it on the trailer since I have done
fresh oil
diff oil
checked air filter
new gas with seafoam
crank sensor
map sensor
I’ve been driving it and I have put 500 miles on it with no problems besides whenever I start it will sputter for a second and sometimes stall its only when it tries idling down from the high idle on a start doesn’t matter if it’s hot or cold and it’s always done it. It throws p0018 code and sometimes other more random timing codes after the hiccup I can drive it all day with no problems it’s only on start up I’m stumped and don’t wanna take it to a shop only for them to throw parts at it the engine idles very smooth and is very quiet
fresh oil
diff oil
checked air filter
new gas with seafoam
crank sensor
map sensor
I’ve been driving it and I have put 500 miles on it with no problems besides whenever I start it will sputter for a second and sometimes stall its only when it tries idling down from the high idle on a start doesn’t matter if it’s hot or cold and it’s always done it. It throws p0018 code and sometimes other more random timing codes after the hiccup I can drive it all day with no problems it’s only on start up I’m stumped and don’t wanna take it to a shop only for them to throw parts at it the engine idles very smooth and is very quiet
JK Jedi
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 11,346
Likes: 2,086
From: Willow Park, TX
Welcome to JKF. Nice find on the Jeep!
First, quick suggestion. At 90k, and given the previous owner, it's likely the transmission or transfter case fluids have never been changed. That might be the next regular "maintenance" item you want to address.
These 3.6L engines are extremely sensitive when it comes to the valvetrain. I would suggest using 10W-30 oil rather than the OEM 10W-20 spec......espeically since you are seeing this cam/crank code. Since you are only seeing this at start up, I would suggest that before starting it, hold the gas pedal down and turn the key. It will kill the fuel system and allow the engine to turn over and prime with oil. I do this a lot when my jeep has sat for a long time. Anyhow, it at least will ensure that you got oil in that valvetrain before cranking over, and given how sensitive that system is to oil pressure, can't hurt. I doubt it makes a difference but it is absolutely free and easy to do.
cam/crank issues are seldom the sensors themselves, but most people start throwing parts at em. if you did/do, i'd always suggest OEM on senors for that jeep. Are you a handy person when it comes to tinkering with things? It would not shock me at all if maybe the timing skipped 1 link on chain and the can phasers/camshaft/crank are just a tiny bit out of spec. it could be that once the engine is running the phaser is able to adjust the shaft enough that you don't notice anything, but once you turn it off and you go to start it up again.....the cam/crank aren't EXASCTLY where the computer wants things and the phaser obvisouly isn't adjusting at the moment of startup.
Is this jeep a 2nd vehicle/toy, or is this your daily driver? I can tell you that when it comes to this vavletrain, "mechanics" are really frustrating to deal with and it's hard to find people worth their salt that know what they are doing with this engine vs just throwing parts at it. for DIYer's it's really not a hard engine to work on in general.
First, quick suggestion. At 90k, and given the previous owner, it's likely the transmission or transfter case fluids have never been changed. That might be the next regular "maintenance" item you want to address.
These 3.6L engines are extremely sensitive when it comes to the valvetrain. I would suggest using 10W-30 oil rather than the OEM 10W-20 spec......espeically since you are seeing this cam/crank code. Since you are only seeing this at start up, I would suggest that before starting it, hold the gas pedal down and turn the key. It will kill the fuel system and allow the engine to turn over and prime with oil. I do this a lot when my jeep has sat for a long time. Anyhow, it at least will ensure that you got oil in that valvetrain before cranking over, and given how sensitive that system is to oil pressure, can't hurt. I doubt it makes a difference but it is absolutely free and easy to do.
cam/crank issues are seldom the sensors themselves, but most people start throwing parts at em. if you did/do, i'd always suggest OEM on senors for that jeep. Are you a handy person when it comes to tinkering with things? It would not shock me at all if maybe the timing skipped 1 link on chain and the can phasers/camshaft/crank are just a tiny bit out of spec. it could be that once the engine is running the phaser is able to adjust the shaft enough that you don't notice anything, but once you turn it off and you go to start it up again.....the cam/crank aren't EXASCTLY where the computer wants things and the phaser obvisouly isn't adjusting at the moment of startup.
Is this jeep a 2nd vehicle/toy, or is this your daily driver? I can tell you that when it comes to this vavletrain, "mechanics" are really frustrating to deal with and it's hard to find people worth their salt that know what they are doing with this engine vs just throwing parts at it. for DIYer's it's really not a hard engine to work on in general.