The answer is – YES, IT IS VERY BIG DISASTER!!!
For those who have 2,4 DOHC and manual transmission, 2005/2006 TJ – keep an eye on Crankshaft END PLAY!!! According to specification it should be 0,09 – 0,24 mm (0.0035 - 0.0094 in). Please find a chance to check it, because if you miss the WEAR LIMIT, which is - 0.38 mm (0.015 in) – you are in trouble.
As I wrote,
http://4bangerjp.com/forums/index.php/topic,10803.0.htmlthe main front seal almost came out of the block. Nobody knew the reason. So I decided just to replace it. It came out again in 600 miles. The point is, that I checked END PLAY and it was something around 0,15. But I did it in a wrong way. The right way is – put somebody in driver’s place and ask him/her to press and release the clutch, and you will see the movement of damper, and you can measure it correctly.
At this time it was over 1mm (0,04 in)! What does it mean? In means that my Crankshaft Thrust Bearing (part No 05174619AA) is completely worn out, and Crankshaft it self (part No 04781643AA) is damaged in the place of contact.
What was the reason for this damage? 84000 miles – were not. The worn Clutch – yes, but partly. The main reason was that very “smart” guys at Chrysler Mexico decided that for the car with manual transmission one whole Thrust Bearing is too much!!! And they put just one half of it!!!
Can you imagine, as in a cold (very cold) Russian winter morning, I get into my car, press the clutch, turn the key, starter rotates crankshaft and ONE HALF of Thrust Bearing, as a CUTTER takes shavings of off my Crankshaft. Brrr!!!
So, I ended up with total replacement of Crankshaft, set of bearings, main seals, timing belt (two times) and many other f...ng b…dy expensive staff.
The good thing is – the ones who have automatic transmission have no reason to be worried about. In this case the half of Thrust Bearing is enough.
