P0010 Code on a Cadillac: Intake Camshaft Actuator Solenoid Circuit, Bank 1 (Cadillac Guide)

P0010 on a Cadillac is "Intake Camshaft Position Actuator Solenoid Control Circuit – Bank 1." It is an electrical code: the engine control module (ECM) switched the intake cam phaser solenoid, watched its own output, and the circuit did not do what it was told. That makes it a very different job from the cam timing codes it gets lumped in with. On a Cadillac it can come from a 2.0T ATS, a 3.6L CTS or XT5, a Northstar-powered XLR or STS, or a 6.2L Escalade — and the GM documents that name P0010 on Cadillacs point at a broken wire inside the solenoid on the 2013 ATS and a pinched jumper harness on the 2018–2020 Escalade, not at oil or timing chains.

What Does P0010 Mean on a Cadillac?

Every Cadillac engine with variable valve timing moves its camshafts while you drive. A vane-type phaser — GM calls it a camshaft position actuator — sits on the front of each phased camshaft. A small oil-control solenoid steers engine oil into one side of the phaser or the other, and the ECM pulses that solenoid to advance or retard the cam.

The ECM also checks its own output. GM's 2007 OBD table for the Northstar 4.6L LH2 and 4.4L LC3 describes the test plainly: the code sets when "the commanded state of the driver and the actual state of the control circuit do not match," with the output commanded on, the ignition in crank or run, and ignition voltage between 11 and 18 volts. GM's later tables for the 3.6L V6, the four-cylinders and the V8s use the same wording.

There is a wrinkle on early VVT Cadillacs. GM's 2004–2006 tables for the 4.6L LH2 and the 3.6L LY7 split the electrical faults three ways: P0010 for an open circuit, and separate codes — P2088 and P2089 — for the bank 1 intake circuit shorted to ground or to battery. So a 2004–2006 SRX, CTS, STS or XLR with P0010 is pointing specifically at a break in the circuit.

Either way, P0010 says nothing about where the camshaft actually is. It says the intake solenoid coil, its connector, its terminals or the wiring back to the ECM on bank 1 has an electrical fault.

"Bank 1" is the bank containing cylinder 1. On a four-cylinder ATS, CTS, CT4, CT5, XT4 or 2.0T CT6, it is the whole engine. On the 3.6L V6, GM's labor operations call bank 1 the right side, named from the flywheel end — the passenger side on a longitudinal CTS, STS, ATS, CT6 or 2004–2009 SRX, and the rear bank toward the firewall on a transverse 2010–2016 SRX, XTS, XT5 or XT6. On a pushrod Escalade V8 there is only one camshaft, so "bank 1 intake" simply means the single cam phaser.

A Circuit Code, Not a Timing Code

GM splits each camshaft into separate tests:

GM's tables tie them together. In the 2007 Northstar table and in GM's V8 tables, the P0011 performance test is listed as not running while the cam phase output drivers have a fault. The ECM itself treats the circuit as the first thing to sort out — a cam that cannot be commanded cannot be judged on performance.

Low oil, sludge and a stretched timing chain cause plenty of Cadillac cam codes, but they do not normally set P0010 on their own. If someone quotes a timing chain or phaser for a lone P0010, ask what electrical test led them there.

Which Cadillacs Can Set P0010

Any Cadillac engine with an electrically controlled intake phaser can set P0010. We checked GM's published OBD diagnostic tables and found P0010 listed for these Cadillac engine groups:

• Northstar 4.6L LH2 with VVT — 2004-and-later XLR, 2005-and-later STS, and the 2004–2009 SRX V8 (GM tables 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007).
• High Feature V6 — 3.6L LY7 (2004-on CTS, SRX, STS), 2.8L LP1 (2005–2007 CTS), 3.6L LLT, 2.8L turbo LAU (2011 SRX), 3.0L LF1, 3.6L LFX, and the second-generation 3.6L LGX and 3.0L twin-turbo LGW in the ATS, CTS, CT6, XT5 and XT6. The V6 has four solenoids; bank 2 intake reports as P0020.
• Four-cylinders — 2.0L turbo LTG and 2.5L LCV (ATS, CTS, CT6), 2.0L turbo LSY (XT4, CT4, CT5, and four-cylinder XT5/XT6), and the 2.7L turbo L3B (CT4 and CT4-V).
• 6.2L pushrod V8s with cam phasing — the Escalade and the 2016–2019 CTS-V. GM's PIP5553A lists P0010 for the 2018 Escalade L86 and CTS-V LT4.

Engines that cannot set it: the non-VVT Northstar LD8 and L37 in the DeVille, DTS and Seville (GM's 2007 table for them lists no cam actuator codes), the Opel-built 3.0L L81 in the 1997–2001 Catera, and the 3.2L LA3 in the 2003–2004 CTS. None of their GM tables lists P0010.

What GM Has Published for Cadillac

Special Coverage 15824 (June 2016) is the headline. It covers certain 2013 Cadillac ATS (and 2013 Chevrolet Malibu) with the 2.0L turbo LTG or 2.5L LCV. GM's wording: P0010 or P0013 "may set as a result of an internal broken wire in the intake or exhaust camshaft position actuator solenoid." The fix was replacing the intake (12662736) or exhaust (12662737) solenoid valve, and the coverage ran 10 years or 120,000 miles from the original in-service date. For a 2013 car that term has passed for practical purposes, but a dealer VIN check is free and confirms it either way.

PIP5553A (September 2018) covers the 2018 Escalade with the 6.2L L86 and the 2018 CTS-V with the LT1/LT4. It lists a long string of codes — P0010 and P0011 among them, along with crank, cam and oil pump codes — with a possible crank no start or stall. The cause GM gives is a wiring jumper harness chafed at the bolt at the X154 connector on the lower left of the engine front cover. PIP5724 (April 2020) repeats the finding for the 2020 Escalade L86, describing the harness as pinched between the X154 bracket and the front cover.

PIP5094, a general GM instruction for 2014-and-earlier cars and light trucks, applies to every circuit code including this one: check terminal pin fit and tension before replacing any component. A spread female terminal produces exactly the mismatch P0010 looks for.

Finding the Right Solenoid on Your Cadillac

• 2.0T and 2.5L ATS, CTS, CT6: both solenoids sit at the timing end of the cylinder head. Intake and exhaust valves carry different part numbers — 15824 lists 12662736 intake and 12662737 exhaust for the 2013 ATS — so do not swap them to test.
• 3.6L and 3.0L V6: four solenoids, one per camshaft, at the front of each head. Bank 1 is the right side. On a transverse SRX, XTS, XT5 or XT6 that is the rear bank, which means more access work than the front.
• Northstar LH2: four phased camshafts as well. We could not confirm from the GM documents we read which physical side GM designates bank 1 on the Northstar — confirm it in service information before you unplug anything.
• Escalade and CTS-V V8: one phaser on the single camshaft, controlled through an actuator at the front of the engine. GM's later Escalade documents call the electrical part a camshaft position actuator magnet.

Symptoms of P0010

• Check engine light on
• Rough or unstable idle
• Hesitation or reduced power, mostly at low rpm
• Rough idle or reduced torque — the symptoms GM lists in its 2014 ATS/CTS 2.0T exhaust-solenoid coverage for the same broken-wire failure
• On a 2018–2020 Escalade or CTS-V, possible crank no start or stall if the front-cover jumper harness is the cause
• P0013, P0011, or on a V6 P0020, stored alongside
• Sometimes no drivability change at all if the phaser parks in its default position

Causes and How to Confirm Each

How Is P0010 Diagnosed?

1. Record every code, current and history. P0010 with P0013 suggests a shared connector area or two solenoids of the same age. P0010 with crank and cam sensor codes on an Escalade points at the front-cover harness.
2. Run a VIN check. On a 2013 ATS 2.0T or 2.5L, ask whether Special Coverage 15824 is recorded and whether any solenoids have already been replaced.
3. Find the correct solenoid. On the V6, bank 1 is the right side; on a transverse model that is the rear bank.
4. Inspect and pin-test the connector before anything else, per PIP5094.
5. Measure solenoid resistance against the service specification for your engine.
6. Run an output-control test with a bidirectional scan tool and see whether the intake cam angle follows the command.
7. Test the circuits between the solenoid and the ECM if the solenoid itself checks out — and on an Escalade or CTS-V, inspect the X154 area.
8. Replace the condemned part, ordered by VIN.
9. Clear the code and road test through idle, light cruise and acceleration.

Parts and Cost

Order solenoids against your VIN. Intake and exhaust valves look alike, carry different numbers, and GM supersedes numbers over time.

GM Documents Relevant to P0010 on a Cadillac

Have a dealer check your VIN for open bulletins, campaigns and special coverages rather than relying on any article, including this one.

What Other P0010 Pages Get Wrong

• Treating it as a timing or oil code. P0010 is a circuit test. Oil and chain problems set P0011, P0014, P0016 and P0017 — not a lone P0010.
• Calling the solenoid a "camshaft position sensor." The sensor reads the cam; the solenoid moves it. Sensor faults set the P0340 family.
• Saying every Cadillac V8 can set it. The DeVille and DTS Northstar (LD8/L37) has no cam phasing. Only the VVT Northstar LH2 and the phased pushrod V8s can.
• Replacing sensors on an Escalade with a page of codes. GM's PIP5553A and PIP5724 trace P0010, P0011 and several sensor codes to one chafed harness at the front cover.
• Getting bank 1 wrong. On a transverse XT5 or SRX, bank 1 is the rear bank, not the one you can see.
• Promising coverage. 15824 covered only the 2013 ATS 2.0T/2.5L, and its 10-year term has run out for practical purposes.

For the same code on Chevrolet engines, including GM's both-solenoids bulletin for the Equinox, see our P0010 guide for Chevrolet models.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is P0010 serious on a Cadillac?

It is rarely an emergency, but it is not one to ignore. With the intake phaser uncontrolled the engine can idle rough and lose low-speed power, and on a 2018–2020 Escalade with a chafed front-cover harness GM reports possible crank no start or stalling. Get it diagnosed promptly, especially if stalling is part of the picture.

Can low oil cause P0010?

Not normally on its own. Low or dirty oil affects whether the cam can move, which sets the performance code P0011. P0010 is an electrical check. Check the oil anyway — it is free and matters for the companion codes.

Is my 2013 ATS covered?

Certain 2013 ATS models with the 2.0T or 2.5L were included in Special Coverage 15824 for a broken wire inside the cam solenoid, for 10 years or 120,000 miles from the in-service date. That term has passed for practical purposes, but a dealer VIN check is free.

Where is the intake cam solenoid on a Cadillac XT5?

The 3.6L has four solenoids. P0010 is bank 1 intake, and on the transverse XT5 bank 1 is the right bank viewed from the flywheel end — the rear bank, toward the firewall. Bank 2 intake reports as P0020.

What is the difference between P0010 and P0013?

Same test, other camshaft. P0010 is the intake solenoid circuit; P0013 is the exhaust. GM's 15824 coverage named both because the same internal wire failure affected either solenoid.

Can my DeVille or DTS set P0010?

No. The front-drive Northstar LD8 and L37 in the DeVille and DTS do not have variable cam timing. If a scanner shows P0010 on one, re-check the vehicle and engine the tool is set to.