The instantaneous friction in main bearings of a single cylinder diesel engine was determined by measuring the instantaneous angular velocity, calculating the resulting forces acting on the bearings, and solving the unsteady Reynolds equation in combination with the mobility method. The considered system consists of only the crankshaft with flywheel and oil pump. The thermal effects were not considered because of the short testing time. The tests were conducted using an electric start motor. The results indicated that when the bearing is not near equilibrium for very small speeds, simple film lubrication theories are not accurate. The details of grooves and unsteady terms in the Reynolds equation cannot be ignored for increasing efficiency of instantaneous friction calculation of the engine bearings. The effects of speed on instantaneous friction and energy lost in friction were determined.