How do you release a timing belt tensioner?
Release the timing belt by rotating the tensioner with a socket wrench. Use a ratchet or socket wrench to turn the tensioner. To release pressure from the system, turn the tensioner away from the belt. Depending on your vehicle’s setup, you may need to turn it clockwise or counterclockwise.
What happens when a timing belt goes bad?
More often than not, it is actually the tensioner that goes bad, not always the belt (unless it is really old). Most of the time a belt will break due to a seized pulley or bad tensioner allowing it to contact the timing cover. Listen. A bad tensioner will usually be accompanied by noise.
What does the pulley on the timing belt do?
The snakelike timing belt on the side of the engine is essential for maintaining your car’s performance. It is controlled by a round pulley called a tensioner that keeps the line taught as it rotates. More often than not, the tensioner goes bad before the timing belt does.
How do you tension a power transmission belt?
First determine the proper deflection force required to tension the timing belt. Deflection forces are given in the timing belt manufacturer’s tables and/or power transmission drive design online calculators. Then place a straightedge across the top of the timing belt.
What is the correct belt tension?
The correct timing belt tension is the lowest tension at which timing belts will transmit the required mechanical power and not ratchet teeth when the drive is under a full load.
What is the purpose of a belt tensioner?
A belt tensioner is utilized in different parts of the automobile engine, such as the serpentine belt. The main purpose of any belt tensioner is to tighten the engine belt, allowing the belt to energize congruent parts of an engine, such as the serpentine belt to the alternator.
How do you test a belt tensioner?
An easy way to test the tension of the drive belt is to hold a ruler along a stretch of the belt, then use your thumb and index finger to try to pull the midpoint of the belt away from the ruler. If you can pull the belt more than a half inch from the ruler, it is not tight enough.
How long does a drive belt tensioner last?
Drive belts typically last anywhere between 40,000 and 70,000 miles. There aren’t a lot of warning signs that a drive belt tensioner has hit the end of its lifespan, in fact there is really only one. Once you start to hear a grinding or squeaking sound coming from your engine, it’s time to have the drive belt tensioner looked at.