I know there are a ton of Mahle piston threads, but I searched a lot of them and I could not find an answer to this.

I have a set of Mahle pistons and was starting to assemble the pistons/rods. Anywho, started to push the c-clips in and noticed it's not snapping in solid like a CP piston C-clip.



The c-clip seems to need to sit in the groove but it looks like it's too big and the c-clip isn't "popping" in properly. Has anyone else that has used mahle pistons had a similiar problem with it? Maybe I'm not installing it properly? I'm wondering why they didn't just use a normal c-clip like CP and other manufacturers. Or possibly did someone package the wrong c-clips in?
-Chuong

 

ive only used one set of mahle pistons....and the clips did not look like that. if i am looking at your blurry *** picture correctly ( ) it looks like instead of being a "C" clip that it bends outwards on one end? the set i used was nearly 2 years ago....but the clip was different

 

Yes, I found it very weird also. The C-clips have a bend in them and I have NEVER seen one (at least honda engines) look like that.

Sorry for the blurry picture. We all don't have a wife/girlfriend whom is professional photographer status. All I'm equipped with is my camera phone which I had to convert to jpg and shrink down.....

 

sometimes the groove which the clip sits in will get a bur along the edge of it while installing the clip and this will not let the clip lock into place.

did the first half of the clip start to lock into place?

 

you could clip off the little bend if its preventing it from seating.

 

To me it looks like the bend in the c-clip is too long and it's not allowing the other 1/2 where the bend is not allowing it to seat properly. The first half (without the bend in it) seats into the groove perfectly. Just where the bend is, it doesn't have enough room to snap in since that bend is so long.

Has anyone clipped that bend down/off? I'd rather not rig up a pretty important part of the engine.

 

Original picture...

 

My advice would be to try to get a better pic (not trying to give you a hard time), go to this page:http://www.us.mahle.com/C12570...TULEN , click on contact and fill out the email form and send them a copy of the pic. May have given you the wrong clips possibly. I wouldn't modify the one they gave you without talking to them first. Good luck!