The crankshaft is a key part of your car that will negatively affect other components if it is not taken care of and replaced when necessary. In most cases, you will have to replace another key component – the engine. This can be a lot more costly and enhance the overall crankshaft replacement cost. It is one of the most expensive and tedious problems that you can have fixed in your car. In order to avoid this, try and keep the crankshaft in the best condition possible. If not, you can expect to pay an average of around $2014 for a crankshaft replacement cost total.
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Replacing the crankshaft is generally a part of an entire engine overhaul job done at your mechanic’s shop. However, you can also remove the components from around the engine block to get to just the crankshaft. Since you are replacing the crankshaft, you will also have to install a new set of bearings. Once you remove the engine and the components out of the block, you can then work on the crankshaft replacement.
What is the crankshaft?
The crankshaft in your car is a hardened steel shaft that goes the entire length of the engine, changing the linear force of the pistons into a rotational force. If a crankshaft or a piston within the crankshaft is not working properly, it means you will have to do an expensive repair in the form of an engine repair or replacement.
The crankshaft consists of four event spaced throws, connected to the bottom of the pistons by the connecting rods. These throws are generally not in line with the axis of the crankshaft, which helps create the rotational energy needed to change the force into a rotational force.
The crankshaft is attached to the engine by bearings at both ends of the shaft, connecting to the flywheel and the clutch. The flywheel is the heavy metal disk that is installed on the rear end of the crankshaft, and translates stored rotational energy into the engine. The clutch is the part of the car that connects two or more rotating shafts, controlling the connection between the shaft connected to the engine and the shaft that is in charge of the wheels.
When the clutch is engaged, the energy of the crankshaft is transferred through the car’s gearbox and goes on to the differentials to the driveshafts. These differentials are connected to your car’s wheels, which creates the ability of the car to move and the wheels to turn correctly.
The crankshaft also contains various weights that are built into the system and balances that are in charge of keeping the vibration to a minimum, to ensure that the crankshaft and the pistons do not rotate too much. A vibration that is too hard or continues on for too long could damage the bearings on the crankshaft and the conrods and pistons.
Benefits of a Crankshaft Replacement
By fixing the problem with the crankshaft, you can avoid having to repair or entirely replace the engine. An engine replacement can be very costly, ranging at between $3,000-$4000 for most cars. You should expect to spend even double this amount for luxury or bigger cars. The bigger the car and the engine are, the more expensive a replacement will be. This means that the crankshaft replacement cost will be much friendlier on your wallet than an engine replacement will be.
Further, fixing the crankshaft replacement problem will make sure your car continues driving safely and reliably. The longer you drive your vehicle with a crankshaft problem, the more damage you will cause.
When to Get a Crankshaft Replacement
If there is an issue with your crankshaft, you will be able to tell by certain signs within your car. More specifically, there are certain issues that can show you have an issue with your bad crankshaft position sensor, which will influence the crankshaft replacement cost.
The crankshaft position sensor detects how fast the crankshaft is spinning, and then sends this information to the engine control unit in your vehicle. This information can determine how the engine control unit should regulate the timing of the spinning and the ignition system. Without the proper timing, the right amount of power will not be able to be produced to power the ignition system.
The crankshaft position alerts the engine control unit to the inner workings of the timing chain, gear wheels, and the belt, letting the camshaft operate the exhaust valves at the right times. If the valves do not open and close at the right times, this can cause problems with the exhaust system, which will enhance the total crankshaft replacement cost.
By containing a crankshaft position sensor, the internal combustion engine can gain the right information about the position and speed of the crankshaft. This can help sort out the problems with the functionality of the engine and the car's performance, ensuring that there are no crankshaft issues that will point to a necessary crankshaft replacement.
Engine Vibrations
If you feel any vibrations coming from your engine, the engine control unit might not be able to manage the crankshaft properly. Because of this, your engine will continue to vibrate constantly and violently while you are driving. You might even be able to feel those vibrations in the wheel, alerting you to the problem early, and letting you have a chance to spend less money on a crankshaft replacement cost.
Check Engine Light
The engine control unit always is talking to the crankshaft position sensor, meaning that there is something wrong with the sensor, the computer will not receive the right information about the crankshaft speed and position. This can cause the Check Engine warning light to illuminate on the dashboard. This is generally one of the first symptoms of a bad crankshaft position sensor, showing how the early detection can lower the total crankshaft replacement cost.
Weak Engine Performance
If your crankshaft position sensor is faulty, then the engine control unit will not be given the right information about the position of the crankshaft or cylinders. This can cause a delay in the information given to the electronic control unit’s system and lessen the ability to keep the engine operating at the optimum performance level.
During this delay, this can cause the gas pedal acceleration to hesitate or not respond at all, creating a dangerous situation for you and other drivers. By fixing this bad crankshaft position sensor, you can avoid a more expensive crankshaft replacement cost in the future.
Trouble Starting Car
The engine control unit is notified when the crankshaft position sensor is not working properly. If the engine control unit is given a specific code where it indicates the problem with functionality, it can also be more difficult to start your vehicle since the engine might not be able to get started as easily. Make sure you fix this issue with the engine before continuing to drive your car, as engine issues can skyrocket the total crankshaft replacement cost.
Engine Stalling
The engine stalling involves your car suddenly stopping running while driving – as you can imagine, this is a dangerous problem. If you do not fix this issue when you first notice the stalling, the engine can die completely, meaning you have to get your car towed once it breaks down – leading to a more costly crankshaft replacement cost when you add in towing and the engine replacement price.
Cylinder Misfiring
A crankshaft position sensor that is not working correctly will not be able to send the right data about the piston position to the engine control unit. This can lead to engine misfiring inside the chamber cylinders, with the initial issue coming back to a bad crankshaft position sensor. A misfiring engine can cause more issues in the future, leading to a higher crankshaft replacement cost.
How to save money on crankshaft replacement cost
Despite being a costly repair, there are a few ways that you can save money on a crankshaft repair or replacement. You can take note of the prices from various mechanics in your local area to see who is offering the lowest price on a total crankshaft replacement cost. Some of these places will vary greatly between labor prices as you will see.
You can also decide to source the parts that you need for the necessary repair or replacement on your own. Make sure you consult a mechanic or the local auto store to see what parts you will need. If you can find them cheaper than what the mechanic was going to charge you for them, then get them yourself, and then have the mechanic do the labor work for you.
Due to the complexity of the replacement and the high costs of everything involved, a wrong move could actually lead to a much higher crankshaft replacement cost in the long run. Instead, you should bring your car to a trusted mechanic in your area that can do the replacement.
Crankshaft Repair Costs
If you have decided that your crankshaft does not need a total replacement, but instead just needs a repair, there are a few things a mechanic can do to help your situation. The repair of a crankshaft is a very difficult and tedious process that requires true mechanical knowledge, and is best left to the professionals.
There are various types of crankshaft repair, like polishing, crankshaft pulley repair, canal cleaning, bearing replacement, crankshaft balancing, dressing, and grinding.
Regarding a few of the more common cars on the road today, there is an average list of prices that you will have to pay for the crankshaft repair cost. For example, America Motors and Jeep usually runs at about $75 for a 4-cylinder repair, and cost about $90 for a V8 repair.
A Ford car crankshaft repair will run at the same amount of $75 for a 4-cylinder engine, $90 for a V8 engine, and $83 for a V6 engine. Chrysler vehicles have the same pricing, while the Buick is more expensive, coming in at $105 for the V8 engine. A Cadillac, since it is a luxury vehicle, will run at about $90-$105 for a V8 engine repair.
The average cost for a crankshaft repair runs between $50 and $105, with the labor generally being between $130 and $165.
Although the crankshaft repair is for smaller issues, it definitely is a lot cheaper than a total crankshaft replacement. If you need to replace the entire crankshaft, the replacement cost will be much higher.
Sample Crankshaft Replacement Costs
In order to get an idea of how much you will have to spend on a crankshaft replacement for your specific kind of car, we have included some sample replacement costs that are based on popular models on the market today.
First, on the cheaper side of things, one of the least expensive cars for a crankshaft replacement is the Nissan Altima, coming in at $1800-$2102 for the total crankshaft replacement cost. The labor for this car comes in at around $1300-$1347, with the parts being relatively cheap, coming in between $500-$755.
The second least expensive car for a crankshaft replacement is a tie between the Honda cars – the CR-V, the Civic, and the Accord, since all of these cars have the same labor costs at between $1125 and $1478. The parts are all coming in between $680-$740 since they are all from the same manufacturer, with the total crankshaft replacement cost being between $1805 and $2218.
On the more expensive end of the price spectrum, the total price for the crankshaft replacement cost for the Chevrolet Silverado comes in at between $2061 and $2190, with an overall higher average cost than other similar cars. Despite the parts being cheaper than that of the Honda cars and even of Toyota Camry vehicles, the labor is much higher, coming in at between $1431 and $1490.