So as the title states, I'm one of the "lucky" ones who managed to get crankwalk in an evo. What confuses me, is that my Evo IX MR only has 21k miles on it. The car has not been abused and doesn't have any internal engine/tranny/clutch upgrades. Do you have any idea why this could have happened with such low miles?

I am currently in the process of pulling the engine myself. I plan to tear it down and do as much of the work as possible by myself. I have plenty of experience working on cars, but have never worked with engine internals and really don't want to mess this up. I am looking for as much advice on this rebuild as possible.

Should I plan to buy a new block or (if the damage is minimal) could I just replace the crank and thrust bearing?

 

Well that just sucks.
The DSM guys have a bunch of stuff they do to help avoid CW.
Never push start your car.
Disconnect the clutch safety switch and always start the car in neutral so it gives time for oil to get to the thrust bearing before clutch load is applied.
Some actually file the edge of the crank bearing halves to give an extra channel for oil to go directly to the thrust bearing.
Remove and block off oil squirters.
Some swear if a block walked once it will again and to get a different block.
Check the oil galleries for slag and rough edges. Basically port them for better flow.
Many avoid using a cut down crank. Aftermarket or OEM new/used polished only.


Then you have all the theories of why it happens. Bad run of cranks, stuck oil squirters, heavy clutch caused it, only 7 bolts do it, poor thrust bearing design (which Mits did redesign in DSM's), main cap misalignment, and I've even heard people discuss putting arp's in the mains "distorted" the mains causing bad oil clearances (which I don't believe), and then just improperly built.
Which nothing has ever been proven.
So just do what makes you comfortable. Any of these things really are just a piece of mind type thing or insurance. None have proven to not prevent CW. As for me I always go overboard when I build things and some insurance doesn't hurt anything but your billfold.

 

usually once it crank walks the block is completely junk. so hope for the best in your case.

 

I have an evo short block that failed after a back yard build, and ended up with about .040 of crank end play.

What I found was the rear thrust wash was in backwards, seems a common issue tho, not the first 4g I have pulled down from a build and found one or both the washers backwards.

As far as ARP main studs distorting the main bore, it can happen, but not every block has that issue. This last one I pulled down did tho, center main was tight by .0005 in one way, but spot on the other way. so a align hone is needed.

But I have pulled ARP mains in other blocks and they have been fine to run as is.

But a factory built suffering crank walk at 21k miles, sound like wrong oil or crud in the oil that chewed it up.



Chewed up thrust face



Attachment 216914

 

Thank you for the input guys! I have a feeling that I am going to need a whole new block. I drove it for awhile knowing there was an issue (I thought it was the TOB ticking).

I will be updating this thread with photos and more questions once I get the engine out. Thanks again!

 

Also... I'm pretty sure my 97 eclipse GST that i'm driving for the winter has crankwalk too

 

Have you checked into the warranty? I know the IX has a 10 year warranty that would normally cover this but I don't know your circumstances.

 

subscribe I wanna know how it goes. Good luck man

 

Hey guys, I finally got my engine pulled after a LONG winter. As you can see below, I found the thrust washer and a ton of shavings and shards in the oil pan.





I haven't been able to get the crank bolt off yet, so I haven't been able to inspect the block too much more, but I am confident that I'll be needing a new block. I am not sure what caused it yet, as I'm not exactly sure what to look for yet.

I have been reading a lot about 4G64 swaps and I think I'll be going that route. I am a little confused regarding which pistons/rods/crank setup to use. I would like to reuse as much as possible from my Evo IX. What I've read is that the IX pistons won't fit, so do I use the 64 pistons or buy forged pistons? also do i use the 63 or 64 crank? rods?

Thanks for reading guys

 

I had crank walk too in my IX recently too, sucks! I have 600 miles on my new BR 2.3L. Ya, that crank bolt is really on there. My impact wouldn't get it off either. I ended up putting a pry bar with rags for padding (not necessary if you are sure it's all junked) under one of the piston journals on the crank and against the block. Then i used a breaker bar and bounced my whole body weight on it to break it loose.
Your picture is interesting, both of my thrust bearings were still in their homes. I didn't have that many shavings. It looks like your one thrust bearing is completely gone and the other is in ok shape, it just fell down into the pan.
Have you built a shortblock before? have all the tools? know a good local machine shop? what are your power goals when you get it fixed? its hard to recommend where you should go with it if we don't know what you have in mind for it. Also what is your budget approximately?

 

I'll have to give that crank bolt trick a shot, thanks Tyler!

I have never dealt with engine internals. I understand that I am not experienced enough to put this thing together without some professional help. I do hope to do as much as possible myself. I have plenty of tools and my roommate works at a gigantic fabrication company with endless machines. There are a couple local engine shops that I intend to check out for machining. My budget is about $2k. I figure the 4g64 is a much cheaper option as I can pull one from a local junkyard. I plan to run the stock IX turbo ported around 25 psi. I don't have a specific power goal, I just want my car back on the road.

I would like to get as much displacement as possible out of the 4g64 as well. I've read about 156mm rods and custom 86.5mm Wiseco pistons, is this the ideal setup? Also, I may just go with whatever piston/rod setups are for sale in the Sale section.

 

So I managed the get the crank bolt off and pull the whole rotating assembly. The pistons and rods look fine. The bearings are pretty beat up. The crank seems fine, with some wear (could be too much i'm not sure). The block looks untouched other than some wear around where the main bearings seat. The crank cradle thing looks similar.

BLOCK





GIRDLE






BEARINGS









As you can see here, piece of the center main bearing broke off and stuck to the block.


CRANK





I called up a local race engine machine shop, and they said they just did this on an Evo. And that they machine the crank to allow for oversize bearings to be run in the engine. I have searched and searched and have never heard this method. What do you guys think?

 

What type of oil have you been using? At what intervals?

 

Ive only put 5k on it since I bought it. I used Mobil 1 10w30 the one time i changed it out (around 3k miles). The previous owner used 5w20 the day he sold it to me, so I assume he used that.

 

Ouch 5w-20 in a 4g63? Nothing like water for oil