The relevance of the topic of the article is due to the unresolved problem of failures of automobile engines, in particular, modern mass-produced engines of the KAMAZ-740.10, 7403 families, due to cranking of the connecting rod bearings, and the need for deeper studies of the processes and phenomena that lead to them, and the development of solutions that exclude them in operation. The purpose of the study is to ensure the reliability of automobile engines by reducing the risk of crankshaft connecting rod bearings turning in operation by developing a method for studying their shape change and applying it when substantiating and implementing various design, technological and operational solutions. A prototype is described and a developed method and device for determining the clearance in a connecting rod bearing, suitable for studying the formation of connecting rod bearings under engine test bench conditions. The prototype was a differential-type pneumatic device used in active control devices for honing cylinder liners. With the use of the described device, a method for studying the formation of connecting rod bearings under the conditions of bench tests of KAMAZ-740.10 diesel engines was developed and tested. The use of new methods, devices and techniques makes it possible to investigate the patterns of shape changes of connecting rod bearings in relation to lubrication conditions, temperature and load conditions of the engine, and other factors. The presented experimental results show that the gap in the connecting rod bearing is not stable, is caused not only by wear, but also by the resulting deflection of the liner, and significantly depends on the temperature regime of the engine - with an increase in oil temperature, the gap decreases due to an increase in deflection. The authors explain the formation of deflection and shape change of the liners by the loss of its stability from the action of loads and internal stresses under conditions of instability of the oil supply. The results of experimental studies presented in the article have a scientific novelty, since a previously undescribed and not fixed decrease in the gap due to the deflection of the liners, which is formed immediately from the start of operation after the engine is assembled, is established, and its value is variable and determined by the temperature regime. Practical significance – the developed method makes it possible to study the formation patterns of crankshaft connecting rod bearings to test the effectiveness of design, technological and operational solutions to prevent their turning during the operation of an automobile engine. The main directions of promising research is the substantiation of practical solutions to ensure the stability of the shape of the liners during long-term operation of the engine.