Russ---It's necessary to remove the sump to see what thickness of thrust
washers are being used. If what you find are the standard thickness
washers, they will (usually) be unmarked on the non-working side, and
measure .092, or less. Try to measure in an area that's not worn, as on
the edge. Oversized thrust washers are identified on the back side by
a stamping, showing their size, such as ".005."
Doing the math will tell you what kind of replacement washers you'll
need. Don't be afraid to close up the tolerance here to less than the
".008" recommended by most manuals. I set mine at .003 nearly 60,000
miles ago, and today there's virtually no play in the crankshaft, when
levering it back and forth. It would seem that if you don't allow too
much play to start with, no hammering will take place to speed up the
wearing process. The .003 is just enough to let oil separate the parts
here. (I'll admit that I was a little nervous with such a close
tolerance when putting the engine back together, but by mixing and
matching standard and oversized washers, my choice was +.008 or +.003.
It turned out well with the closer tolerance.
Of course, determining how much clearance you have is easier when the
gine is upside down and bolted to an engine stand, and setting up a dial
indicator is much simpler. Still, it can be done from underneath the
car, just not as comfortably. If there's any doubt about the condition
of this area of the crankshaft, go with a larger, standard tolerance of
.008.
Dick Taylor
CF11143
L.A.
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