Pat,
If this is of interest to you, I would suggest that you hunt up the
article. It was in an issue of MG Magazine, but I understand that it's
also in Twist's web page. He did recommend oil pump replacement at the
same time. It seems to me that his idea is to change these
easily-replaced bearings and pumps as a way to ensure that the pressure
stays up where it should be, thus protecting the mains. Mains are harder
to change. Please understand, I'm not a pro at this--just passing on some
info that made sense to me.
Changing the rod bearings is not difficult. You scrub off the engine
with detergent and water to get it as clean as possible on the outside,
jack up and set car at the maximum height of the jackstands. Then use
the jack to lift the front of the engine as high as the engine mounts
will permit, to allow access to the forward sump bolts. Remove the sump.
Rod caps are then accessible. Follow the proceedure in the book, keeping
the caps on the same rods and ensuring that the forward edge of the cap
stays forward. I don't remember if he suggested use of plastigage, but
it's not a bad idea as a check that all is well. Torque per the specs.
Reassemble, fill with oil and treat as a new engine for a time.
On Thu, 09 Apr 1998 21:41:50 -0700 Patrick Bailey <pbailey@qnet.com>
writes:
>> If you have high mileage, you might consider John Twist's
>suggestion
>> that you change the connecting rod bearings every 80,000 miles.
>
>How hard are they to change?Can they be changed in the car or do you
>have to pull the engine? Will they give you warning before they
>go?Would
>it also be a good idea to change the oil pump too?
>My b has about 89K on it but still good oil pressure 50 idle 65~70 at
>3000 rpm after a good run on the freeway it is about 60 @ 3000 45 at
>idle but it goes up quickly after getting off the freeway I'm using
>Castrol 10W40 and a WIX filter.
>Pat
>
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