P0344

P0344 is the intermittent Bank 1 CMP code — the signal disappears or goes invalid briefly under specific conditions and recovers, exactly parallel to P0339 on the crank side. The customer complaint is usually a momentary stumble at a specific RPM/temperature window, a slow hot-restart, or a check engine light that comes on and goes off with no obvious driveability symptom. Cheapest-first ladder: data-log CMP signal at high sample rate during a road test replicating the conditions — log cam phaser commanded vs actual angle alongside, because P0344 paired with sluggish phaser response means the underlying problem is oil delivery, not the sensor. Wiggle-test the harness from sensor to ECM with the engine running, paying special attention to the area where the loom crosses the cam cover or transitions from rigid plastic conduit to flexible harness. Heat-gun the sensor and connector to trigger heat-soak failures. Inspect cam-cover gaskets for weeping oil into the CMP connector — wet contacts cause intermittent low/high signal flickering. Verify the sensor mounting bolt has not loosened and let the sensor walk in its bore (changes the air gap dynamically with engine flex).

Vehicle-specific patterns: VW/Audi 2.0T EA888 P0344 is the early warning sign of timing chain stretch before the harder P0016/P0017 cam-correlation codes set in — do the chain job at P0344 stage and save the engine; let it progress and the chain can skip and bend valves. Honda K24 sees P0344 from Hall-IC heat aging where the sensor reads fine cold but goes intermittent above 200F coolant temp. GM 3.6L LY7 throws P0344 as the OCV screen progressively clogs and oil delivery to the cam phaser becomes inconsistent under load. Chrysler 3.6 Pentastar P0344 typically clears with an OCV screen service plus an oil change to fresh viscosity-correct oil. Estimated repair: $80 to $2500.