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P1335 Toyota — Crankshaft Position Sensor Signal Lost While Running

Severe

Quick answer

P1335 means the crankshaft position signal disappeared while the engine was already running — Toyota’s companion to generic P0335, which covers losing the signal during cranking. Without that signal the engine usually stalls on the spot. Wiring, the connector, and a sensor that fails when hot are the usual suspects.

What it means

The crankshaft position sensor is the engine’s metronome: a pickup reading teeth on a crank-mounted plate, telling the computer exactly where the crankshaft is and how fast it’s turning. Every spark and every injection is timed from it. Toyota splits its failure into two codes — P0335 when no signal appears during cranking, and P1335 when a signal that was present vanishes with the engine running above roughly idle speed.

That distinction is diagnostic gold. A signal that dies mid-run points at things that change with heat, vibration and motion: a sensor whose winding opens up as it warms, a connector breaking contact over bumps, a chafed harness, or — less often — a cracked signal plate. A sensor that never produces a signal at all is a different, simpler conversation (see P0335).

On many affected Toyota engines the sensor lives low on the front of the block, behind the crank pulley or lower timing cover — splashed by road grime and heat-cycled constantly, which is exactly the environment that produces works-cold-fails-hot electronics.

P1335 symptoms: what you'll notice

  • The engine suddenly stalls while driving — often restartable after a few minutes’ cooldown, which is the classic heat-failure signature.
  • Intermittent stumble or cut-out, like the ignition was switched off for a fraction of a second.
  • The tachometer dropping to zero momentarily while the engine is clearly still turning.
  • A no-restart when hot that recovers once the engine cools.

Common causes

Ordered from most to least likely.

  1. 1.

    Connector or wiring breaking contact

    Vibration and heat-hardened insulation near the crank pulley — inspect before buying parts.

  2. 2.

    Crank sensor failing when hot

    The winding opens as temperature rises — measures fine cold, dies warm. A heat-gun test exposes it.

  3. 3.

    Damaged signal plate or wrong sensor air gap

    Usually after front-of-engine work — timing belt, crank seal, harmonic balancer.

  4. 4.

    Metal debris on the sensor tip

    The magnetic tip collects ferrous paste that weakens the signal.

How to fix it: diagnosis, step by step

Cheapest and most likely checks first.

  1. 1 Inspect the connector and harness

    Find the sensor low on the front of the engine, unplug it, and inspect for corrosion, oil, and brittle insulation. Follow the harness up — it often clips along brackets that chafe it. This is the free fix when you get one.

  2. 2 Measure the sensor cold and hot

    Measure pickup-coil resistance against spec (the manual lists cold and hot values). Better: measure cold, then warm the sensor with a heat gun and watch — resistance going open with heat is the smoking gun for stall-when-hot complaints.

  3. 3 Catch the signal in the act

    If you have a scope or a scanner with RPM live data, watch during a stall or wiggle-test: RPM dropping to zero while the engine still spins means the signal — not fuel or spark — is what quit.

  4. 4 Check the signal plate if work was done recently

    If the code followed a timing belt, crank seal, or balancer job, verify the signal plate is undamaged and the sensor seated to the correct gap — assembly trouble mimics sensor failure perfectly.

  5. 5 Replace with OEM-grade

    If the sensor is condemned, fit a Denso or genuine Toyota unit. Crank sensors are a poor place for bargain electronics — an intermittent aftermarket sensor reintroduces the exact symptom you just chased.

Parts & tools you may need

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Related codes

Frequently asked questions

What does code P1335 mean?
P1335 means the crankshaft position signal disappeared while the engine was already running — Toyota’s companion to generic P0335, which covers losing the signal during cranking. It’s serious — diagnose it promptly to avoid expensive damage.
Can I drive with P1335?
Reluctantly and briefly. The failure behind this code stalls engines without warning — in intersections, on highways. Treat it as urgent: diagnose now, and avoid driving situations where a sudden stall is dangerous until it’s fixed.
What’s the difference between P1335 and P0335?
When the signal was lost. P0335 sets when no crank signal shows up during cranking; Toyota’s P1335 sets when an existing signal vanishes with the engine running. Mid-run loss points at heat- and vibration-sensitive faults — intermittent wiring or a sensor that dies warm.
The car stalls, sits, then restarts fine. Why?
That cooldown-then-restart pattern is the classic heat-failing sensor: its winding opens as temperature rises and reconnects as it cools. Measuring resistance cold and then hot (heat gun) usually catches it in the act.
Could it be the battery or alternator instead?
A sudden stall has several parents, but the tachometer is your witness: if RPM display drops to zero while the engine is still spinning, the crank signal quit. Charging problems announce themselves differently — dimming lights, warning lamps, slow cranking.
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