I have a 2002 Alpha Romeo 147 twin spark. Ive had a recent

Dear *****, I understand your query and excuse me the delay to communicate with yo,u what you present is known mechanically as an axial play on the crankshaft. The crankshaft has been designed to only move tangentially in the block but the vibrations with the passing of the time worn known shells or seals, Like the axial rods, these rods fulfill the same function as the crankcase or connecting rod of the crankshaft but they comply axially, the main symptom is that the seal is not properly attached to the crankshaft but it is a small slack victim of these rods worn, The good thing is that you can disarm the crankshaft by the bottom of the engine or by the oil pan of the vehicle, to verify the state of these rods but In any case you have to disassemble the gearbox to be able to remove the crankshaft. So, it is going to be almost the same to lower the engine to make this replacement for the small space that you have in your Alfa Romeo to make the replacement of these pieces by the bottom of the engine.

In short, dear customer the discomfort and the small work space to be able to make this replacement will be to make the decision to dismantle or not the engine everything depends on the skill that presents in my particular case I would disassemble it to work better to fit and review all the parts in the proper way.
have you understood me dear customer?
Dear Customer, my goal is to give you the best advice I can and I hope that I've helped today.
If more help is needed or something is not understood, please use the reply tab to continue our conversation. If no further assistance is needed, kindly rate my service, your 5-star rating is appreciated ( should be a link to click on here or above). You can rate at any time and we can continue to work on your question as this will not close out your question. I work on delivering the best answer and help here but in some cases, it can be difficult to do without seeing the vehicle.