C1233 Front left Wheel Speed issue

[polizi212]

My 2008 Explorer XLT 4x4 with 4.0 engine, has had a intermittent issue with the Left Front wheel speed sensor. For a while I would get a flashing traction control light and I could feel the truck surging. If you watched the tachometer you could see the rpms drop and rise to normal several times. I know this to be the traction control trying to get things in order. Well shortly after it would do this the Service RSC now would come on followed by the wrench and the alarm. I could sometimes restart and not get the issue again and sometimes it would come back.

So after checking the code it indicated the sensor, I ordered a new Motor-craft ABS wheel speed sensor and installed it on Thursday. Everything was fine until Sunday on my way back from Columbus when the traction light, ABS light and the wrench all came on again with the Service RSC warning. I stopped and tried a restart and as soon as I hit 10 mph all the warnings came back. I checked all the connectors and everything looked good. I drove it home and stopped at a Autozone and had the code read and i was the C1233 again. I removed the new sensor and put in the old on and the truck as been fine.

How can I test the sensor to make sure its bad? Is it really possible I just got a bad sensor? Should I be looking at something else that can be causing this?

 

[boominXplorer]

Does it have any wheel bearing play? That will cause a good sensor to throw a code. It could have an internal issue on the tone ring inside the hub also.

 

[polizi212]

no there is no play in the bearings and they make no noise. I am leaning towards a faulty sensor as the culprit here. I was able to get a little look into the bearing at the tone ring and all the teeth are there and with the old sensor still in I have had no faults!