Fan Belt tensioner wobbling about

_Snowy_ · Jul 28, 2023

Hello yet again.

99' 110 TD5 with A/C

Fitted a new belt, tensioner and idler since they detonated each other during a recent overheating scare. Started up at idle and the tensioner is bouncing about like a mad thing. Poor quality video uploaded at the link below...

Will this bed in/settle down with rpm or could it be more serious?

For context the old tensioner bearing failed, caused the belt to snap and get tangled in everything then overheat, eventually popping the top of the expansion tank. My worry is one of the other pulleys is damaged causing an unstable weight imbalance hence snatching at the belt?

Wobbly tensioner video

Cheers

KISSMYAURA · Jul 28, 2023

Apologies if you knw all this but some thoughts

Pulleys in the vid look fine, but you might want to change any other idlers....always good to do when you change the idler
(I have a TD5 90, covered this in my build thread)

Is the belt the exact same part number ( the number is the length) belt looks a tad on the long side etc...

Dare I ask what make the tensioner is? Seen this with a bearmach ( aka bagosheet) before even with a the correct belt.

Lemforder / or Gates is the way to go

Anaconda · Jul 29, 2023

Take the tensioner off and check it along with checking all other pulleys. Looks like the tension in the spring could be weak, although I am no expert.
Just buy a genuine one, that's what I did and at about £50 they are not expensive.

Interceptorxj · Jul 29, 2023

I would check your bottom crankshaft pulley, they are a harmonic balancer type pulley and this happens when they start to separate.

Anaconda · Jul 29, 2023

Interceptorxj said:
I would check your bottom crankshaft pulley, they are a harmonic balancer type pulley and this happens when they start to separate.

Oh yes, done that previously on mine.
Tensioner is considerably cheaper and easier to fit so I would look there first.

Western Slope Rover · Jul 29, 2023

Anaconda said:
Oh yes, done that.

It may be that you have a compressor on the way out. It's called "slugging". The compressor is trying to compress liquid, which it cannot, instead of gas. If so, the compressor is toast.

_Snowy_ · Jul 30, 2023

Thanks for the replies,

Yep tensioner and idler bearings were both gone and replaced for that previous video. Belt is the correct one for td5 with AC and is definitely the right tension.

The new one is apparently "OEM" but came in an all makes SNR box. Taiwan so not complete chinesium!

Eitherway, old tensioner was fine, just the pulley bearing that went so I swapped the old one back in with the new one's pulley attached and it is so much better.

Less wobbly now. Interestingly you can't see the wobble outside of usual vibration with the naked eye but something about the fps of my phone camera means you can see it still moving a bit on the new video.

So problem solved for now, but perhaps there are some issues further up the pipe, AC compressor most likely candidate... so will keep an eye out.

Cheers

KISSMYAURA · Jul 31, 2023

_Snowy_ said:
Thanks for the replies,

Yep tensioner and idler bearings were both gone and replaced for that previous video. Belt is the correct one for td5 with AC and is definitely the right tension.

The new one is apparently "OEM" but came in an all makes SNR box. Taiwan so not complete chinesium!

Eitherway, old tensioner was fine, just the pulley bearing that went so I swapped the old one back in with the new one's pulley attached and it is so much better.

Less wobbly now. Interestingly you can't see the wobble outside of usual vibration with the naked eye but something about the fps of my phone camera means you can see it still moving a bit on the new video.

So problem solved for now, but perhaps there are some issues further up the pipe, AC compressor most likely candidate... so will keep an eye out.

Cheers

Much betterer

tom1979 · Aug 7, 2023

_Snowy_ said:
Thanks for the replies,

Yep tensioner and idler bearings were both gone and replaced for that previous video. Belt is the correct one for td5 with AC and is definitely the right tension.

The new one is apparently "OEM" but came in an all makes SNR box. Taiwan so not complete chinesium!

Eitherway, old tensioner was fine, just the pulley bearing that went so I swapped the old one back in with the new one's pulley attached and it is so much better.

Less wobbly now. Interestingly you can't see the wobble outside of usual vibration with the naked eye but something about the fps of my phone camera means you can see it still moving a bit on the new video.

So problem solved for now, but perhaps there are some issues further up the pipe, AC compressor most likely candidate... so will keep an eye out.

Cheers

Too late now but you should have sent it back if it was fairly new. We sell the same tensioners and not had an issue with them (yet), although I would always recommend a genuine tensioner for anything other than a weekend toy.

Fan Belt tensioner wobbling about

_Snowy_

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KISSMYAURA

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Anaconda

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Interceptorxj

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Anaconda

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Western Slope Rover

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_Snowy_

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KISSMYAURA

Well-Known Member

tom1979

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