Inspection

CAUTION:
- Care should be taken not to damage the fractured rod and cap joint face surfaces or possible damage to engine may occur.
- Do not re-use the connecting rod bolts. They have been torqued to yield at least twice and must be discarded.
- It is not necessary to ream or hone the piston pin bore in the connecting rod. Replace damaged connecting rod nuts and bolts or engine damage may occur.

Inspect the connecting rods for signs of fractures and the bearing bores for out-of-round and taper. If the bore exceeds the recommended limits and/or if the connecting rod is fractured, it should be replaced. Check the inside diameter (ID) of the connecting rod piston pin bore. If the piston pin bore in the connecting rod is larger than specification, install a 0.025 mm (0.001 inch) oversize piston pin. Prefit the oversize piston pin to the piston pin bore by reaming or honing the piston to provide 0.007-0.013 mm (0.0003-0.0005 inch) clearance (light slip fit). Assemble the piston, piston pin and connecting rod.

The connecting rods and related parts should be carefully inspected and checked so they conform to specifications. Various forms of engine wear caused by these parts can be readily identified:
- A shiny surface on either pin boss inside of the piston usually indicates that a connecting rod is bent.
- Abnormal connecting rod bearing wear can be caused by a bent connecting rod, worn or damaged crankpin or a tapered connecting rod bore.
- Twisted connecting rods can create an identifiable piston skirt wear pattern, but badly twisted connecting rods will disturb the action of the entire piston, piston rings and connecting rod assembly.
- Twisted connecting rods may also cause excessive oil consumption.