Never used an impact to install the bolt, just threaded it in by hand a bit then a ratchet till it got tight. Used a torque wrench to torque it down.

 

If you are going to take crank just do it in the truck. Why spend all day pulling the motor? There is enough room to pull crank out with out hitting anything. Take rack bolt out and let it hang and take four bolts out for the engine crossmeber. On my truck had to take the ac bracket off to get to the front side bolts for crank mains.

 

Im 4wd. It would be way more work to try and move everything than it would be just to pull the engine.

 

It's not that they get cross threaded. What happens is the bolt gets bottomed out or a longer install bolt gets bottomed out and then galls, or tears the threads. Then as you try to remove the bolt, the threads keep galling up, ripping them out until there is so much resistance the bolt twist off. ARP bolts would be more susceptible because they are harder, higher tensile strength and subsequently once you get them in a bind, they will snap easier when twisting. They are a higher grade which gives them more clamping power, but lowers there threshold of twisting, before snapping. Make since?

 

Sorry i didn't know you were 4 wheel drive.

 

Definitely, pull it out and save yourself a lot of headache

 

Can you describe what it felt like when you were removing the bolt (for my future reference)? When I pulled my factory crank bolt, after initially breaking it loose, if I recall correctly it pretty much just came out by hand.

 

Ya I remember the first time I removed the factory bolt once I broke it loose initially I could pretty much turn it out by hand. This time it loosened but every turn fought me even with my long breaking bar which should of been a sign something wasn't right.

 

definitely cross threaded if it fought you with every turn.

 

Like I said before I didn't use any loctite.