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Re: 91Crank/Idler pulley P.M., I'll be down there anyway... Posted by Ari [Email]  (#2847) [Profile/Gallery]
(more from Ari) on Thu, 3 Jan 2002 13:34:37
In Reply to: 91Crank/Idler pulley P.M., I'll be down there anyway..., Shahn, Thu, 3 Jan 2002 13:08:43 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
Take a couple of feet of garden-type hose, hold one end to your ear, and use the other end to pinpoint the noise. Just make sure you don't stick the hose into a moving belt. If an idler pulley is shot, you'll hear a ballsy rumble from it.
When I was facing the same tasks as you, I actually remove the belts and spun the idler pulleys by hand to test them. You'll know a bad one when you feel it. You can loosen the belts from above in relatively little time. This allowed me to order the parts I needed before ripping the car apart.
You can save considerable $$$ by buying the idler pulleys mail order. Check out the folks that advertise on the BB (see the bottom of the page). I don't remember the exact figure, but a $70 (dealer) pulley came out well under $20 from Sobstory. Even cheaper, if the bearing is shot, you can bring the pulley into a decent autoparts store with a machine shop. They can press out the old bearing and usually match it with a stock bearing. That's more hassle than it's worth to me - I just mail order them.
As to the crank pulley, that's not one I'd replace without reason. The usually give warning, but on occasion they have failed with no warning, but I think that's rare. As to what mileage they die at, I've had only one die on me so far, at that was at 75K miles. On all my other cars I've never had a problem, and I've driven them over 140K, 150K, and 160K on the original pulleys. So since the chances of yours being bad is low, I would take the chance and not buy a replacement. When you take it off, and by some chance you see the rubber is cracking, then buy one mail order, and pay a few extra bucks for express service.
I've not seen motor mounts killed due to failed seals. In cars with the oil filter mounted on the back of the engine, oil changes dump oil onto the rear motor mount, which can rot out the rubber. The front motor mount will die without having to dump oil on it due to dry rot and age.
To check the motor mounts, first find them. The front mount is on the front right side - sight down between the belts and the coolant tank. You'll see a bolt coming up through a rubber circle. Slip a jack under the engine, cushioned by a block of wood, and move the engine SLIGHTY. You're not trying to move the engine out of the car - just tip it a half inch or so. Look at the mount. When the mounts fail, the bolt just lifts out and the rubber stays. In some cases, the bolt with a little ball of rubber lifts out, leaving most of the mount. If you see the mount flexing and staying in one piece, the mount is probably fine.
For the rear mount, cut the wheels all the way to the left, and sight in through the hole in the fender liner where the driveshaft comes through. Do the same and see if the rear mount holds together.
posted by 140.157....
, Thu, 3 Jan 2002 13:34:37 <-- Viewing This Message
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