Hi, new member here, can use some advice after my dumb mistake!

Working on a 5.4 Triton engine, I removed one of the crankshaft main bearing cap bolts by mistake. See diagram and photo

I thought it was the coolant block drain plug, but obviously not. I immediately reinstalled the bolt and tightened it down by hand. I do hope I didn't screw up the bearing alignment. Should I disregard this or is there further action I should take at this point?

Many thanks in advance.

 

Torque it to specs.

 

OK thank you glc. From the manual, it looks like these are torque-to-yield, so I will order a new replacement bolt.

 

I don't think that bolt holds a main bearing cap. Those bolts are not accessible without the oil pan off are they?

 

Well now you have me wondering. This bolt sits just above the oil pan. I don't know what else it could be. When I removed it, a few drops of oil ran out. What on earth is this mystery bolt anyway? Someone who has built up the 5.4 engine must know for sure.

 

I just looked at a video that showed a little and I think I'm wrong. Those side main cap bolts are accessible from the outside it appeared.

 

Yeah I think that's right. The diagram above also shows the holes for the side cap bolts along the bottom of the case halves. I have a new bolt on order. I'll install it per the assembly instructions above. I just hope I didn't mess something up by removing it in the first place. I did find out that with the 5.4L, the bearing cap bolts are not used to adjust or align the bearings, so I think I will be OK.

 

They're called "tie-bolts" and yes, they ARE accessible from OUTSIDE the engine. Make sure you use a new copper sealing washer with your new bolt or it'll leak. Torque them according to the manual's instructions.