I've had an intermittent squeal for some time. I have looked and hadn't been able to locate it. When I spent some quality time under the hood replacing the oil pressure sensor this weekend, I noticed that the serpentine belt was off of the flywheel/harmonic balancer a tooth or two. I put it back on and the noise went away! Yeah!! A short drive later and the squeal was back and the belt was misaligned again. Upon closer inspection I noticed that the flywheel/harmonic balancer was pushed back toward the motor. It appears that it is a two piece assembly and that the outside shell (where the belt rides) had moved on the center core. I was able to pry it back to the outside using a long screw driver and turning the motor several times to pry all the way around the pulley.

Started the motor and it sounded great! In just a couple of seconds the squeal was back. Sure enough the pulley had slipped toward the motor again and the belt was partially off...again!

Has anyone else seen this problem? Any suggestions? I've got to get this fixed quick. Is this a DIY or am I at the mercy of the dealership?

Here's a picture of the pulley problem.

 

Once the outer ring moves it’s time for a new crank pulley. I have not changed one on a C5 but have on a few F bodies. Looks to me like once you get the rack out of the way there will be room for the puller. If you go to LS1Howto.com you can see a picture of a puller being used to remove a crank pully.

 

Thanks!

I'm starting to feel the need to donate a bunch of money to the local dealership. I think I could do the repair given the time, but this is my daily driver and I need it fixed fast. With my Longhorn Corvette Club membership, our supporting dealership provides a rent car for free.

Anyone have any idea of what this might cost? I may change my mind about taking it to the dealership.

 

Does your pulley wobble as well? mine, did. As far as a DIY you'll need to remove the steering rack, get a crank pulley puller($25) and get a lot of torque on that bolt to get it off.

For me a new pulley, non-underdrive, cost me $90 and the tune shop i took it too charges $75/hr and it took 1 hour. So the total cost was $165. An underdrive pulley will cost you $220-250. I'd expect ~$500 or more from a dealer to get it all done.

 

Thanks!

So is an underdrive the way to go?

• Advantages?
• Disadvantages

?

Thanks in advance!!

 

that looks familiar....cost me right at $600 which included the towing about 25 miles one way....mind you I needed the crank pinned etc so your cost will be less

BTW mine went to local Vette specialist....dealer may be more..

 

Mine started to wobble. had it replaced immediatly. I've been told that when one comes apart it does alot more damage than the 300 to 600 dollars to replace it, especially since you an move it physically.

 

I recently had the pulley changed out. I opted for a 25% underdrive pulley. I have not had one single problem since and the car seems to have a little more power. I would recommend Texas Speed and Performance if you have the time to get it shipped. They shipped mine out the same day I had it shipped out. WIth the dealership free rental it shouldn't come to more than $300. I am going to enclose the link for the pulley.


http://www.texas-speed.com/shop/item...d=629&catid=20

If you are planning on putting in a cam this is the time to do it since the pulley will have to come off anyway.

 

Thanks for the reply and the link! I think this is the route I'm going to go, if I can't find one locally today.

I was concerned that the AC may not cool as good at idle. I notice you're here in Texas too, so I'm assuming that this isn't an issue?

 

nice pic, never seen one that bad

 

Jharms, you are playing with fire.. Folks have lost entire motors over defective stock pulleys.. Take our advice, stop driving it immediately and have it repaired asap.

 

I'd be a good time to throw a cam in there, too.

 

No problems with the cooling at idle even with all of this mild heat we have been having lately. As others have stated, if it comes loose and separates it could cost you some serious money. I hope you can find one of those powerbond pulleys local because you won't be disappointed and the extra horsepower was a definite plus for me. I didn't realize I would be able to feel it as much as I could. The guys at TSP sent it out right away when I called. It actually came in the next day. I was actually surprised at how fast it arrived. I went with the 25% and have't seen any problems whatsoever. Good luck on everything and keep us posted on the outcome.

 

Okay! I did it!! Wow, what a job. With all of the input and information from this forum, I was able to replace the harmonic balancer (crank pulley).

One piece of advice that I should have taken note of was to use a crank pulley holding tool. Other than that, I just followed the instructions and they were very accurate.

I had a couple of issues that I've worked through or I am working through. When I got it all assembled, the power steering didn't work very well and there was a huge squeal. I assumed that they were related. After much deliberation (after midnight last night) I finally took the top line off of the rack and pinion, started it up, and ran some fluid through it. That seems to have fixed my steering problems.

The squeal was still there. I sprayed some WD-40 on the harmonic balancer and the noise quite for a brief time. My fear is that since I wedged a screwdriver between the pulley and the motor so that I could torque the bolt that I may have damaged something. I drove it to work today and the squeal isn't totally gone, but it is certainly better.

I reused the belts. I wonder if they are just readjusting to the new pulley. Has anyone else heard of this issue? Any thoughts?

 

more info?

 

What info do you need?

 

Yep... been there done that..pulley wise that is. Question. If you put an undersized pulley in don't you need a smaller belt?

 

I got mixed input on going with an underdrive pulley. Since it's my daily driver, I went with the stock pulley.

I would have enjoyed the better gas milage and loved the extra power, but I certainly didn't want to run the battery down because of idling in traffic with the A/C on.

 

Lose those stock belts and replace with Goodyear Gatorbacks after cleaning all pulley grooves with a wire brush. Use no lubes/sprays of any kind. You'll be glad you did.