In desperate need of help with coolant problems

[BlueC]

The idler pulley

There is an idler pulley, and a tensioner pulley. You need to rotate the tensioner pulley back/down to slip the belt off.

The tensioner pulley is under the alternator in this picture.

 

[mrblaine]

Working on it now, have a slight problem. The idler pulley won’t loosen enough for me to take the belt off. The belt is still very tight with the pulley loosened all the way. What do I do?

You are missing something obvious or the belt would have never been able to be installed.

 

[mrblaine]

There is an idler pulley, and a tensioner pulley. You need to rotate the tensioner pulley back/down to slip the belt off.

The tensioner pulley is under the alternator in this picture.
View attachment 388664

That isn't how his is set up.

 

[Austin O.]

There is an idler pulley, and a tensioner pulley. You need to rotate the tensioner pulley back/down to slip the belt off.

The tensioner pulley is under the alternator in this picture.
View attachment 388664

That’s not what mine looks like. This is mine

The idler pulley on the bottom right is all the way loosened, and the belt is still tight

 

[Austin O.]

You are missing something obvious or the belt would have never been able to be installed.

That’s what I thought, but I’ve been staring at it for 20 minutes now

 

[Austin O.]

It’s like the belt was the wrong size yet someone installed it somehow anyways

 

[mrblaine]

That’s what I thought, but I’ve been staring at it for 20 minutes now

Look down behind the bracket with the slot in it and make sure the threaded block is all the way at the end of the adjuster bolt.

 

[Austin O.]

Look down behind the bracket with the slot in it and make sure the threaded block is all the way at the end of the adjuster bolt.

I loosened it so much that the pulley came off. So the pulley is all the way off, and the belt is still tight

 

[BlueC]

Is this the tensioning pulley and its adjusting bolt at the bottom in this setup?

If this is it, are you loosening the pulley or tensioner (highlighted)

 

[Austin O.]

Is this the tensioning pulley and its adjusting bolt at the bottom in this setup?
View attachment 388668

Yes

 

[mrblaine]

Is this the tensioning pulley and its adjusting bolt at the bottom in this setup?
View attachment 388668

If this is it, are you loosening the pulley or tensioner (highlighted)
View attachment 388670

The bolt in the pulley locks the tension adjuster in place. You have to loosen the bolt, then turn the tensioning bolt which then slides the pulley up and down in the slot.

 

[mrblaine]

I loosened it so much that the pulley came off. So the pulley is all the way off, and the belt is still tight

The pulley moves in that slot by turning the tensioner bolt. Did you turn the bolt on top of the bracket to move the pulley all the way down in the slot?

 

[TheBoogieman]

 

[Austin O.]

The pulley moves in that slot by turning the tensioner bolt. Did you turn the bolt on top of the bracket to move the pulley all the way down in the slot?

Yes, I did that first. All the way. That wasn’t enough, so I took the pulley off in its entirety hoping that that would loosen it a bit more. Still tight

 

[Austin O.]

That’s what I’m doing… the belt is still tight

 

[mrblaine]

Yes, I did that first. All the way. That wasn’t enough, so I took the pulley off in its entirety hoping that that would loosen it a bit more. Still tight

Cut the belt and buy the correct one.

 

[Austin O.]

Cut the belt and buy the correct one.

That’s what I was planning on

 

[mrblaine]

That’s what I was planning on

You do understand that if you have to cut it with the pulley removed that there is something really odd going on, right? Typically with that set up, when the pulley is all the way at the lower end of the slot, the belt will just sneak over it but once in place is not very tight at all. For it to still be too tight to remove means they did something almost impossible to install it.

 

[mrblaine]

Saw a pretty neat trick a while back on holding the thermostat in place. Loop a wire or string through the top of the thermostat the side that faces the hose. Pull the wire through the hose hole and pull it tight till you get it in place and snug the bolts down. You should have at this point two wires out the hose hole end, pull one side removing to wire and then torque bolts down as needed.

That might be more successful if you have a thermostat housing that has the recess in the housing and not the block. In this case, that would drive you crazy moving the housing around to seat the thermostat in the recess and getting the gasket in place over it.

Easy way is to put a thin layer of RTV on the edge of the thermostat, stick it in the recess, then the gasket, then the housing.

 

[Austin O.]

You do understand that if you have to cut it with the pulley removed that there is something really odd going on, right? Typically with that set up, when the pulley is all the way at the lower end of the slot, the belt will just sneak over it but once in place is not very tight at all. For it to still be too tight to remove means they did something almost impossible to install it.

Yeah, for sure. I have no idea how they got it on. It’s off now though. Thanks for your help