Ford Repair: 1381, piston chamber, low oil pressure

Question
Hi Dennis;
           I have another question which I hope you can help me with regarding my '98 Contour 2.0 litre. I had been getting a 1381 mil code(cam sensor) the dealer put it on a computer checked the sensor at its wiring and found no problem,they cleared the malfunction but as soon as i drove the car out of the dealer the light came back on. I noticed that if I shot the motor off and than start driving, as soon as the 2nd gear engages (automatic) the light comes on.Now as long as the motor is on and i clear the code I can drive forever and ever from dead stop to top speed and the code wont come on, but as soon as i kill the motor and restart it and drive the light comes on in the 2nd gear.
What do you think?
                                   Thank You
                                    Tom S

Answer
Here are the possible causes of this code. It is not a cam sensor, but a cam timing issue.

Possible causes for DTC P1381:

Cam Timing improperly set.
No oil flow to piston chamber.
Low oil pressure.
VCT solenoid valve stuck closed.
Camshaft advance mechanism binding (VCT unit).

I haven't seen many of these codes, but I do recall there were problems with the VCT solenoid sticking.

TSB 03-15-14 details a procedure for this and other codes.