C5 Harmonic Balancer Issue....
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Drifting
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 1,398
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C5 Harmonic Balancer Issue....
I am new to the C5 Corvette. I have been looking at them on-line. Recently I came across one that the owner claims to have replaced the harmonic balancer. My question is....Are all C5's prone to this issue ??? How do you know if the balancer needs to be replaced ??? And would this issue have affected anything else in the motor???? Also...what does it cost to have this repair made ???? Thanks to all.
Burning Brakes
Joined: Dec 2022
Posts: 1,040
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From: Nappytown MD
My 02 bought in Jan of 23, had 56K on it and it wobbled some. Drove it normally for ~6 months and then I did a SC upgrade, so got a new one anyway as part of that, but it needed it. It is not a C5 thing per say, it is a GM (or any other manufacturer) that uses a balancer that has the rubber piece/damper in the design. That rubber gets old and worn from the temp cycles it sees over it's life and will start the wobble and fail eventually. It is easy to see, let the car idle and look down at the HB, it will either be spinning straight and true or it will wobble some. There should be NO wobble. A good SFI rated balancer can be had for ~250 bucks from Summit or other vendors. Labor to install it? Well that depends on where you take it. You do have to remove some of the front end to make room, so depending on how skilled your mechanic is, they will remove only what they need to (lesser hours billed) or more than necessary.
If you do change it AND think you will ever boost the car, get it pinned while you are having it done. It will save you time and money in the long run, assuming you will eventually boost the car I mean.
If you do change it AND think you will ever boost the car, get it pinned while you are having it done. It will save you time and money in the long run, assuming you will eventually boost the car I mean.
Le Mans Master
Joined: Feb 2021
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From: Florida
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First, nearly ALL harmonic balancers have rubber in them, including the ATI, and the Summit SFI mentioned above. Just some are better than others. The C5s have been subject to balancers separating, but it not like all of them go bad.
If you can do some work yourself this job is commonly done n the home garage. I’m 69, had never worked on an LS, but I changed out my balancer, cam, and heads. If I can do it anyone can. You can get a good aftermarket balancer for about $100 on Summit.
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/pbb-pb1117n
If you can do some work yourself this job is commonly done n the home garage. I’m 69, had never worked on an LS, but I changed out my balancer, cam, and heads. If I can do it anyone can. You can get a good aftermarket balancer for about $100 on Summit.
https://www.summitracing.com/parts/pbb-pb1117n
