A crankshaft can only be removed if the engine itself is removed from the car which presuming that some of the other parts like the flywheel, crankshaft pulley, timing chain, oil pan, oil pump body, oil filter and piston/connecting rod assemblies have been disconnected. Before the removal process, check the crankshaft endplay, in this case, use a dial indicator to check on the crankshaft. Push the crankshaft to the back and align the indicator, then move the crankshaft to the front to check the result; such reading should range from 0.003 to 0.010 inch (0.076 to 0.254 mm). If the endplay is more than this amount, check the thrust faces for wear. For 3.7L V6 engines, thrust washers are placed on the 4th journal and for 4.0L V6 engines on the upper number 3 crankshaft saddle. The V8 engines have thrust washers on the back of the number 5 main bearing journal saddle of the engine. If for some reason, it is impossible to use a dial indicator, clearance can be measured using feeler gauges. Take out the M/B cap support brace and gently turn the M/B cap bolts before completely pulling off the caps. Slowly and gently raise out the crankshaft, if possible get help, and replace the main bearing caps loosely with the correct orientation. For installation the engine block and crankshaft should be clean and checked for any signs of wear or possible cracks. Lay the block upside down, if necessary, to expose the lower surfaces and remove any end bearings originally fitted; surface and dry the faces as before. Replace new upper main bearing inserts in the saddles, whereby oil holes are to be rightly oriented and correctly fit the thrust washer. A quick check that can be made is the main bearing oil clearance using the Plastigage that should not go beyond the limits. If required, one must replace it by correct bearing inserts size. This film being removed, grease any Plastigage deposit off the bearing surfaces and thrust faces before filing the crankshaft back into position. It is recommended to clean up the bearing insert faces and lubricate with oil before fitting the main bearing and tighten the caps bolts to the manufactures recommended torque with the correct sequence. Check again the crankshaft endfloat and make sure the crankshaft can rotate as easy as possible without any strturing. Last but not the least; fit the main bearing cap support brace and fit the new rear main oil seal.
