Belts breaking
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 216
Likes: 0
From: west coast fl
Belts breaking
My a/c belt broke so I went to replace it but it seems I have another problem. The main belt is riding off center, it appears that the main pulley( I believe the harmonic balancer) has slid forward. I tried to tighten the center bolt but the pulley would just turn. Is there any other reason for the pulley to slide forward other than the bolt coming loose, the bolt appears to be tight. Thanks for any feed back. The motor by the way is running fine and smooth.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Aug 1999
Posts: 3,452
Likes: 3
From: Spring, TX
Unfortunately the news is not good. Your balancer has failed. The balancer has 3 major parts. The Hub that bolts to the crank, a rubber layer and the outer inertia ring that the belt rides in. The stock balancer fails in the rubber layer allowing the outer inertia ring to slide either forward or backwards. The only thing fortunate about your situation is that it slid forward. If it slides back it cuts through the front timing cover and oil pan. I had that experience.
I would not replace the unit with a stock piece. The aftermarket here is the better choice with ATI Super Damper, ASP and others. You can go with an underdrive or stay with the stock diameter. They are a stouter design. The part is not overly expensive at around $250. However the labor is very steep as this an involved process to replace. It can be done by an experienced DIY or a novice with help. Labor alone could be $1000.
If you are at all interested in improving the power of your car now is the time to have a cam install as most of the labor involved in that process is the same labor to replace the balancer. If you do it yourself what you save in labor on having a shop replace just the balancer you can use towards parts for a cam/valve springs, retainers and gaskets. That is the argument I used successfully on the wife in 2004 when I broke my balancer and installed my cam.
Sorry for the bad news and good luck.
I would not replace the unit with a stock piece. The aftermarket here is the better choice with ATI Super Damper, ASP and others. You can go with an underdrive or stay with the stock diameter. They are a stouter design. The part is not overly expensive at around $250. However the labor is very steep as this an involved process to replace. It can be done by an experienced DIY or a novice with help. Labor alone could be $1000.
If you are at all interested in improving the power of your car now is the time to have a cam install as most of the labor involved in that process is the same labor to replace the balancer. If you do it yourself what you save in labor on having a shop replace just the balancer you can use towards parts for a cam/valve springs, retainers and gaskets. That is the argument I used successfully on the wife in 2004 when I broke my balancer and installed my cam.
Sorry for the bad news and good luck.
Thread Starter
Instructor
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 216
Likes: 0
From: west coast fl
Thanks for the reply. When I took a closer look it does appear that the pulley is coming off the balancer sliding forward. The dealer quoted me about $280 labor and $265 for the balancer, sounds pretty good. If I had a lift I might try it myself but that's to much time on my back without one.Thanks again.
