HI,
I have a small belt squeak every morning for about 3 to 5 minutes at idle since 5 days ago, just bought the car 8 days ago (2005 with 64K miles)
After few search on the forum I found all the problem that people had with their harmonic balancer.
Got paranoid and went to the dealer, mine move a bit form back to front but is not wobbly, we check on another vette they had a the dealer and it does the same.
All the video I found on youtube was way more wobbly than mine.
So my question is, is that normal the their is some move on this balancer??

Thanx for your help

 

If you had a serious problem, the squeak would not go away in 5 minutes, it would probably get worse. I'd suggest you just replace the belt if it's the original belt.

 

When I bought my used '05 it too had a squeak and a slight wobble. I had it looked at twice by two dealers when I was on vacation a couple years back. Both times I was told it was fine and that they can wobble a little. I finally got tired of wondering "what if" every time I went out of town in the Vette.

After vacation I took it into my local dealer. When I told them I was concerned due to both the wobble and the squeaking they did not even hesitate. They had another vehicle in the shop waiting for parts due to exactly the same issue. They gave me a loaner vehicle and said I should leave the car and not drive it, even though it would take a couple days to get the parts in for the job.

They did whole job under my GMPP at no cost to me.

Good thing too as when they had the balancer off they found a tiny leak at the water pump which, apparently, was on borrowed time. They replaced that under warranty as well.

The new harmonic balancer runs with no wobble at all!

After all that I still had a squeak but it sounded different after the work. Still gald it was done though as at least I was comfortable in the knowledge that my harmonic balancer was not about to fly off at high RPM and destroy a bunch of stuff!!

The new squeak was 90% fixed by replacing the A/C tensioner. The tiny belt squeal that remained after that was remedied by tossing my almost new belts and replacing them with GoodYear Gatorbacks. All silent now.

I can't remember the VIN numbers affected and I sure that someone else here will chime in with more details but if your '05 is in the affected range, get the balancer and bolt replaced. The possible damage is not worth putting it off for, plus you will always be wondering if/when it will happen to you if you don't just get it done.

Not sure what you mean when you say it will move a bit from front to back?? If you mean that you can grab it and it moves, even the tiniest bit, then don't even start that car! If that is the case, have it towed for repair before you even think of hitting the start button.

B

 

I agree with Walt White Coupe that a belt, or possibly a tensioner is the most likely culprit, however simply for peace of mind I would have a second dealer check it out if your '05 is within the affected range.

My "new" squeak was like yours. It would go away after it was fully warmed up. It was just a tensioner and belt issue. Still, I am happy to know for sure that my balancer is replaced as well, just in case....

B

 

by "front to back" i meant that looking at it turning when engine started it look like it goes in and out the engine (not sure this make more sense
I tried to move it by hand but there is no play.
the move is straight and not wobbly. just a bit of play on the shaft...
the problem is that I just bought the car and have 30 days warranty with this dealer who say that it is normal...
vin is 32802, is that a problem?

 

You are out of the range (first 11039 cars) for the "bolt loosening" problem. Sounds to me like member "bario" found a dealer that needed some shop work and got the warranty insurance to pay for it. I'd just change the belt first and see what that buys you.

 

Yeah, I got a great dealer. I go in with a problem and they fix me up under my GMPP every time. I went in last year with a bit of oil seepage on the oil pan. They gave me another loaner, took off the pan and replaced the gasket. Apparently it is a fairly involved job. Again, GMPP & no cost to me.

Possibly in these lean times they are just looking for work but it makes me a very happy customer and I will be buying my Z06 from them next year due to all the great service

I agree that a belt change should be first on the list. I put new belts on and still had a squeal, which made my decision to have the balancer replaced, just in case. After all, for me it was free. Ends up my new belts were not so great but the Goodyears run silent.

Good luck. Hope it is just belt squeal

B

 

Mine has done that on two occassions for a few days each time, in the cooler, damper weather. I got all freaked out about the harmonic balancer, but each time it quit within a week or so.

At 51K miles I replaced the belt, hasn't done it since.

 

That is how mine started, but the squeak got worse in time. It was the balancer on my car and was replaced with an under drive pulley. Problem solved! FYI- a little wobble is normal, the squeak is not.

 

I recently had my harmonic balancer go bad. The noise was a chirping one, and it didn't go away as I drove; it only got worse. Looking at the balancer while the engine was running showed a significant amount of wobble. I had it replaced under warranty, and the wobble and chirping went away.

Like Bario, I then developed another noise, not nearly as significant, and it wound up being the belt. Without seeing it we can't be sure, but I tend to agree with the others who suggest that it's probably a belt or tensioner issue, rather than the balancer.