Beware of Dealer Mechanics

I documented the problems with my serpentine belt tensioner in previous posts. My solution was to have the Dealer replace the tensioner for my van, using a new tensioner that I purchased separately and provided.

Well guess what happened. Three weeks after replacing the tensioner and while I am out of town on a business trip, my wife calls me, all freaked out, saying that smoke and a bad smell are coming from the passenger side of the hood. I tell her to drive it staight home. A block from the house, she lost the power steering and the temperature gauge spiked. After letting it sit overnight where it failed, she limped it one block home and parked it.

With 98,000 miles, I suspected that something on the belt system froze up, chewing up the belt. Having a new tensioner, a one-year old idler pully and two-year old water pump, I expected to find either the A/C clutch, power steering pump or alternator in a frozen condition.

What I found really shocked me. I found that the mounting bolt for the idler pulley had somehow loosened up and backed out enough that the mounting bushing had slipped out of the bearing and the pulley was wobbling around on the bolt. I was able to unscrew the idler pulley bolt with my fingers.

Now, I had replaced that idler pulley myself and torqued it properly. I had even double checked all the rotating elements that were belt driven looking for my mysterious rattle and finding nothing amiss prior to replacing the tensioner. Makes me wonder how and why this bolt loosened up all of the sudden.

I did find it stange at the time that the Dealer did not try to sell me some additional repair work when I took it in. I guess they figured they would get me back in again for more, one way or another.

thats because they get paid flat rate. the shop I work for pays us by the hour instead of by the job. that lets us have more time to make sure things are done right.