I know the original crankshaft bolt recall did not include the 3.5L motor, but I wonder if anyone can offer perspective on the part involved. Was it a common part across all motors, or was the bolt in the 3.5L different? I've read reports of failures in the 3.5L... just double-checked and I have the original bolt at 160k miles.

If you have ever seen the 3.5 crank bolt you would understand the lack of a recall. The only reasons I can think of would be wrong alloy or improper heat treatment- if either was the case they would recall. Very impressive bolt- I would expect it to be quite expensive. Hope this helps.

Thanks, exp - you're saying that the bolt in the 3.5 is different than the 3.0 then?

There was a TSB for these years concerning the Crank bolt. The TSB was for a re-torque not a replacement. I've replaced mine (95SR) during a timming belt change just for piece of mind as it was relativly cheap (at that time). In my opinion most failures are caused from improper torquing of the crankshaft bolt after a timing belt intallation. If the mech is too lazy, or does not have the right tool to appply the correct torque value to the bolt...well you know the rest of the story. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/scared.gif" alt="" /> Moral of the story: There's no room for error in the design of the crank, pully , bolt assembly, so make sure you or your mech is doing it correctly.

Ahhh - that sheds some light. I saw the TSBs and noticed the difference in wording between the recall on the 3.0s and TSB for the 3.5. I'd also read some NHTSA complaints from 3.5 owners who'd experienced failures that Mitsubishi refused to cover. If those affected had timing belts done outside the dealership network, that would probably allow room for doubt as to the proper torque being applied. So it sounds like it is a different issue.

Oorah, justice - happy weekend. <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/cheers.gif" alt="" />

Is the diameter different than the 2 3.0 bolts.
If not what is the parts #. I'm looking for a bolt that will thread furthur in into my 3.0 crank.