[andyman97]

You have to keep in mind, Clint, the oil level and pressure are not the same. Just because you have enough oil in the engine does not mean you have enough pressure and vice versa.

That's why I warned you about driving the car at all with that leak. Leaks can be catastrophic on a boosted car. Justin came to my house with a massive leak after his motor install and I warned him not to drive any further until we found where the leak was coming from. He was lucky he didn't cause any damage. Any time you're losing oil at all, you're losing pressure. I even learned the hard way.

[speedfoos]

Right right. That's what I meant that I would watch that like while in the car on OP gauge. When she was leaking, I kept 2 quarts of oil in the car and checked it every day. That's not to say that didn't cause this problem of course, I'm sure it compounded with the other issues I was having.

But like you said, a lot of us learn the hard way. The good news is that I haven't sent a rod through the block and am in a position to fix this properly so it won't happen again.

[filipinop1405]

well its good to hear that you finally found what the problem was clint. hope you can get it fix fast and back on the road!!

[andyman97]

Do you have an aftermarket oil pressure gauge?

[speedfoos]

Yep. That's the OP gauge I was referring to.

Found the problem though. Pulled the pan and the girdle off and here's what stared me in the face.















Middle crank bearing is fucked. Bottom half popped right out of the girdle when I took it off. Part number on the back of that half of the berain is DA-95 0103E. I'm going to pick one of those up tomorrow and put it in the girdle and bolt it back up. Yes, I know. This is a band-aid solution. But it's better than nothing at this point since I don't have my rods yet nor do I have my crank pulley tool.

Good times!

[speedfoos]

And a vid of the noises it makes!

YouTube Video

[FoSho]

DAMN!!! That sucks clint! But I gotta say you're mr. fix it. I'm telling ya if you want a job as a mechanic come see me when you get outta the army!!!

We'll just add this to library of car info..........bearings can make crazy noises! I showed my mechanics the squealing video and they said first time they had ever seen that aswell!!

Kinda wish you'd dropped the oil pan first huh?

[speedfoos]

Yeah man, kind of wish I had. Although I wouldn't have dropped the girdle at that point though because the rods looked fine.

Avery, is there anyway you can tell me which part number for the bearing I have (marked DA-95 0103E)without me having to drop the tranny again since I didn't look at when I had the tranny off last weekend? I pulled up a picture and can read the first and last letters on the block if I zoom in, but not the middle one. I'm kicking myself right now for not looking at them!

LOL - mechanicking is only for fun! If I had to do it for a paycheck, I think it would quickly lose it's appeal!

[andyman97]

Order 2 middle and 2 that are one size bigger. Make sure you plastigauge to spec.

[FoSho]

^There you go.....and you're generally not supposed to plastigage while in the car....however honda suggests to support the crank w/ a jack to prevent an incorrect reading....here is what my honda book says......working on part #....VIN would help my guys (they're kinda old, haha)

Here ya go:
---------------------------------------------
Main Bearing Clearance Inspection
To check main bearing-to-journal oil clearance, remove the main caps and bearing halves.

Clean each main journal and bearing half with a clean shop towel.

Place one strip of plastigage across each main journal.

NOTE: If the engine is still in the car when you bolt the main cap down to check the clearance, the weight of the crankshaft and drive plate will flatten the plastigage further than just the torque on the cap bolt and give you an incorrect reading. For an accurate reading, support the crank with a jack under the counterweights, and check only one bearing at a time.

Reinstall the bearings and caps, then torque the bolts to 51 N•m (5.2 kgf•m, 38 lbf•ft). Do not rotate the crankshaft.

Remove the cap and bearing half again, and measure the widest part of the plastigage.



Main Bearing-to-Journal Oil Clearance
Standard (New):

No. 1, 5:
0.018-0.036mm (0.0007-0.0014 in.)

No. 2, 3, 4:
0.024-0.042mm (0.0009-0.0017 in.)

Service Limit:
0.05 mm (0.002 in.)


If the plastigage measures too wide or too narrow, (remove the engine if it's still in the car), remove the crankshaft, and remove the upper half of the bearing. Install a new, complete bearing with the same color code, and recheck the clearance. Do not file, shim, or scrape the bearings or the caps to adjust clearance.

If the plastigage shows the clearance is still incorrect, try the next larger or smaller bearing (the color listed above or below that one), and check again. If the proper clearance cannot be obtained by using the appropriate larger or smaller bearings, replace the crankshaft and start over.

[speedfoos]

Bleh. I hate plastigage. That being said, Andy I don't understand what you mean. I see colors on Majestic's site and the chart that Avery and Tom posted up, but not sizes. All I want is to replace this spangled half of a main bearing so the car will make it another couple weeks. I know this is like "let's spoonfeed Clint so he can do a half-ass repair job on his motor", but she'll get done proper when I get back from deployment. I don't have time to fuck with a complete rebuild right now. I go TDY to Germany all next week, then I come back and 8 days later I'm gone for 90 days. As usual, these things happen at inconvenient times.

Here's my VIN Avery, I'll pull it later so it's not posted here forever:

1HGEM21023L036698

It's the #3 main bearing, bottom half. I just want a the same size bearing that I have as it will be better than this worn one I've got sitting in front of me.

[speedfoos]

Or is there no way to tell without pulling the tranny? If so, she's coming out tomorrow night!

[speedfoos]

OK, I'm headed to bed. Avery if you find out which color bearing I need, please post it up and I'll check it in the morning. Thanks!

[skipbarber]

the vin wont tell you anything about the journal or rod bearing sizes. you have to pull the trans, look at the block journal codes, then find journal codes stamped on the crank. then you'll cross reference them to find the right color. part number on the bearing doesnt mean anything from what ive learned.

[filipinop1405]

DAMN!!! This stuff just might come in handy when i go thru my build... but i'll have a couple peeps around town not to mention clint will be in the states by the time i even get all of my things together.