I was changing the belts as it had started to squeak. Rebuilt and back together but I notice the main tensioner seems bent over. Its pulling the new belt off and into the tensioner bracket slightly. Could have been like this for a while. Checked the idler and the bolt. Both seem fine. Installed it back to front just to see if it made any difference but it still runs off to the back. So assuming whole new part. You can see the belt has run to the back of the idler in the picture.
P38A Serpentine belt alignment issue
- Thread starter Joss155
- Start date
This site contains affiliate links for which LandyZone may be compensated if you make a purchase.
ukadamwest
Well-Known Member
- Posts
- 2,990
- Location
- Surrey
i would suggest that a crack in the arm might lead to the belt being pulled backwards 
- Posts
- 19,297
- Location
- Buckinghamshire, UK. ('95 DT)
Yes, common fail. @Rick-the-Pick went through about 3 in quick succession and ended up modding it.
I'm wondering if I can make up a special lever to take the tension off. It seems you are either leaning on the spring tensioner (my old one was smashed at both ends by previous removals from other people) of you lever the side other the bracket which puts a side load on it.
- Posts
- 58,170
- Location
- Preston Lancs.
Done properly releasing belt tension is easy and puts no strain on the tensioner arm at all. Let alone any sideways pressure. Hamfistedness can break it though i suppose.
Well that's just it. The way described looked like it damaged the spring tensioner. I replaced mine because from what I could tell 1 of the previous owners had used this method and smashed it to pieces. There was only half the bottom bolt hole left. I had been using this other method which seemed fine to try and avoid this. Anyway the point is it had already failed from what I could see causing the squeak.
Last edited:
- Posts
- 58,170
- Location
- Preston Lancs.
Not using that method he didn't as long as the tensioner arm was not seized onto the shaft.
