Hi Guys,

Yep it all happened just like pcc said. The crank sprocket turned behind the crank pulley. All the driven accesories are free, so my take on it is that the root cause must be the crank bolt. Threads on this bolt seem to be somewhat damaged (overtightened maybe?). My theory is that the bolt was overtightened, thus reducing the clamping force just sufficiently that the crank sprocket could shear the roll pin off and spin relative to the crank pulley. Comments?

I have obtained the spares from the local agents (hugely expensive down here in South Africa, I might add), but am concerned about getting the correct crank bolt part number, especially after reading this
tale of woe. Could anyone advise the correct crank center bolt part number for the 3.5 DOHC (I understand that there was a recall on the crank bolt for the 3.0, but not the 3.5 DOHC. the part numbers for the 3.0 seem to be MD172725 or MD138069)

The recall on the 3.0 also mentions oiling the threads and clamping contact area of the bolt prior to tightening. Should I do this? I am afraid of overtightening the new bolt as well.

Thanks for all your trouble.

Regards

Gerrit