Hey everyone so recently I go a 15 reduction pulley put on my car and I've noticed a ticking noise coming from what looks like the metal strip inside the spring on the tensioner hitting the block or some kind of metal. Is there a way to fix this? I was also wondering if the crank pulley could have some cracks in the rubber causing it to be off balance then making the bekt not run smoothly. Thanks
You probably are running stock belt=too long. Get a 6PK 1365 to 6PK 1374 and your tensioner strip won't be ticking and liable to break. Jeremy
Yep, probably the tensioner is failing - either the damper has failed, or the bushings in the damper have failed, causing it to vibrate more than it should.... Common problem. I replace mine about every 18-24 months when it fails. DaveO replaces his annually, as a preventative. If you're still on your original crank pulley, that's probably a good thing to replace. I think the early cars may have used a different part than the post facelift cars? Not sure if those early ones are more or less failure prone than the 2005/2006 ones - but the 2005/2006 ones will all fail, just a matter of time. I recommend replacing all of them with aftermarket dampened (NOT lightened) crank pulleys as a preventative measure.
Awesome spend more money Thanks for the info. When you said replacing the tensioner are you talking about the whole assembly or just the stock and bushing?
You can source the bushings, but the little damper is only available with the tensioner. You can find the tensioner for $75 from Amazon.
Or.....go for the ever controversial Alta Adjustable Tensioner Stop. Read more about the tensioner damper here: http://www.motoringalliance.com/forums/cooper-s-engine-drivetrain/18681-now-i-know-why-belt-tensioner-stops-break.html#axzz2bdFzkfKd
$75? I thought they were $250. Are the ones on Amazon good quality? I,m about to replace mine. I may do the crank pulley at the same time. Anyone know the best place to get one? Eather stock or liquid filed. I don't want a light weight one.
It's the same part. Look up gates belt tensioner assembly on amazon or you can probably find the link in the thread referenced above. You may also want a idler pulley as well and those are on amazon also. When taking mine off the side to side play was horrific.
Price has dropped on Amazon again. It's now 69 bucks and change. Amazon.com: Gates 38404 Belt Tensioner: Automotive Purchased via the link above gives M/A a small commission.
I run the Amazon one and its the same part made by Gates. It is the same top quality part without the BMW /MINI parts department price markup. ATI makes a quality crank damper but you can get the fluid one a little cheaper. I am sure most M/A vendors and Jan of RMW carry both. Note if your car has high milage and you are changing out crack and tensioner pulleys may as well change out the idler pulley out also. I think they are like $30 bucks at the Stealership.
Thanks everyone. Amazon has the idler pulley for $15 so I'll get it from them also. ATI is what I plan on going with. I've still got to pull the wheel off and take a good look at the crank pulley. I have 120k on the clock so I'm sure it will need it soon, if not now. Thanks agine for the help
Preventive maintenance with our little cars is a must, I put a ATI damper on before I was blessed with the OEM imploding on me at a bad time, also just recently replaced the belt tensioner unit before it decided to come apart on me also, was kind of a PITA not sure if I would want to do it as often as Dave.O but it did quiet down and smooth out things.