V6 Engine Pully Problems

My son has a 2001 Eclipse V6. It was making a squeeking like sound from the engine so he took it to Firestone and they said it was the Power steering idler pully that was making the noise. So, I ordered one and put it on and got the same thing. To make a long story short I noticed after replacing the belts and it got worse, that the inner pully on the engine (where the power steering belt was attached) was hitting the larger outer pully for the other accessories. So I put a little oil on the side of the power steering belt and the squeek went away! Has anyone heard of the outer pully moving backwards? so the side of the larger outer pully hits the side of the belt on the smaller inner pully? I know it sounds wierd but thats what it looks like. Please help! Dave

that is pretty odd. you might be able to add shims or grind away a little bit of material off the mounts to make the clearance you need. good luck.

If anyone is intrested, I found the problem. The outer pully on the harmonic balancer has shifted back towards the smaller inner pully. Causing it to hit the side of the belt and squeeking. It only shifted back about 1/8 of an inch or less but that was enough to cause the problem. There is a rubber ring that holds the outer pully on and it must have seperated from the pully and allowed it to move back. Maybe this thread will help someone else.