90 caravan serpentine belt tension?

[fanbelt]

90 caravan 3.3L

I have never replaced a serpentine belt before, I've had it done at the shops.
2 issues, getting on and off, and getting the tension right.

Assuming I could figure out how to get it on and off, what do I do to get the tension right? Does that take a special tool?
It won't be worth the labor savings if I trash other parts because the belt is too tight or too loose.

Thanks.
fanbelt

( on the old fanbelts I just pried against the generator with a long metal rod. i don't think that works for this.)

[Robertmchenry]

Look VERRY CAREFULLY at how the belt is routed thru all the different pulleys. Usually their is some kind of diagram on a sticker under the hood that shows how all the pulleys & such and how the belt is routed. If your not comfortable with what you see have some else do it for you.

Once you have determined how the belt is routed you should see ONE spring loaded tensioner pulley. This pulley usually has a square hole that you can insert a breaker bar type tool and relieve the pressure on the belt so you can remove.

Thread the new belt and using the tool and pull the spring back so you can get the belt around it.

Note that some of the older tensioner pulleys can get rusted up & "might" need to be replaced.

Nothing worse that removing a belt & not knowing how to thread the new one. My 97 3.3l v-6 has a rusted tensioner that I need to replace. Not as easy to replace because the bolt needed to remove the part is up against the head! You need to really tear into the brackets to get to it.

Keep us posted

[RIP]

What he is saying is the tension is automatically adjusted by the tensioner pully. You don't have to set the belt tension.

[fanbelt]

I'm not sure this one works like that.

I saw that type of arrangement on my son's cavalier and was able to move that with an old frozen teardrop ratchet. (Autozones special tool was too big.)

But the shop manual for the caravan says that I have to get under the car (hoist which I dont have), go through a splash shield area and then
"Release tension by rotating the tensioner clockwise"

And then reverse the steps for reinstall. The picture shows the routing so if i can match the picture to what is on my car now (along with a removing alternator experience on the Cavalier), I am not worried about routing the belt. But those instructions make it sound like there is some kind of elliptic and manual tension setting which I don't have a clue how to do.

(oops, i just realized I am looking at a manual for 1998. I dont know where the 89-90 manual is, but they are both 3.3L engines, so would the process be the same?)

[fanbelt]

Ok, maybe I am wrong and things will become more obvious from under the car. The 84-91 Chiltons talks about a 1/2 breaker bar for the 3.3L.

My tools are 3/8. If I come up with a 1/2 ratchet or breaker bar, and I have the belt routing covered, is this something a very inexperience driveway mechanic can do?

Thanks.
fanbelt

[peterjon1]

Your only problem may be that the tensioner is frozen. If it is, it will need to be replaced.

[RIP]

http://www.autozone.com/shopping/rep...00c1528003c186
Scroll down to figure 11. It shows a drawing for a 96-99 GC 3.3 ltr engine. I bumped this against the diagram on the OPLIN online manuals for your 1990 GC 3.3 ltr. They are identicle.

The "rotate clockwise to release tension" can be misleading. Yes, you are rotating the tensioner clockwise, but what you are really doing is pushing the pully down away from the belt. This is what gives you the slack to pull the belt off.

If you look closely at the tensioner pully assembly in the diagram, You'll see the pully the belt is looped around. Directly to the left you'll see a round object about the same size as the pulley. That is the other half of the assembly. This is the part of the assembly that attaches to the structure and holds the spring of the tensioner. You are going to be puting a 15 mm socket with an extension on the bolt head shown on the pully (on right). When you push down (rotate clockwise) the pulley assembly will rotate down from the attach point.

When I did mine on my 96, I bought a purpose made tool for the job from Sears. Cost around $30. I found it easier to do it from above. The tool gives you the leverage needed to push the pulley down.

[fanbelt]

Hi RIP
I think you gave me the "secret" when you talked about connecting with the bolt head. If it's a 15mm socket that is needed, I can get a short one of those to go with my 3/8 drive stuff. I found a serpentine belt tool on the sears site, it looks a lot like the autozone tool I rented. After my experience of it being too big for the Cavalier, I think I am going to try ratchets with a short pipe extension to lengthen the handle. If things are not frozen too badly, that should work. I agree, working from the top will be a lot nicer if I can do it.

Your last post encourages me to think I can do it myself, It will probably be next weekend before I try it. If you have any other comments for me to consider, let me know. I'll post back and let you all know how it goes.

I am not sure if I have answered all the other responses you have made for me, I appreciate the time you have taken to give me suggestions in my various threads.

fanbelt

[RIP]

The first time I changed it I ground a 15mm socket down and used a breaker bar and pipe combo. Even then it was a tight fit so I pryed the wallet open (it cracked) and bought the tool at Sears. Made it easier in my case.

The only other problem you may run into is a frozen or week tensioner as was stated. Before you start, crank up the engine and closely watch the tensioner pully. If you can see it bounce a bit as the belt turns around it, it's not frozen. Another thing to watch (engine off) is make sure when you press down on it, it has a fair amount of resistance and when you release it, it springs back up.

If you don't have a diagram sticker on the van of the belt routing don't forget the drawing in the link I gave you. Set aside a couple hours and take your time. When you're done you'll either say, that wasn't so bad or gee I wish I had that tool.

[angus10]

Or he'll say I wish you were here!

[peterjon1]

You will do fine, I'm sure. One final point, make sure the ribs on the belt are aligned with the grooves on all the pulleys, and get your fingers out of the way before you release that tensioner!

[peterjon1]

I'm sure you will do fine. One final point, make sure the ribs on the belt are aligned with the grooves on all the pulleys, and get your hands out of the way before you release the tensioner.

[fanbelt]

Well I have gotten a "high quality" Harbor Freight metric crowfoot wrench set. We'll see how that goes with the pulley recess and a ratchet.

[fanbelt]

I finally got it replaced.

When I got the belt off, the pulley on the tensioner had a bit of side to side wobble, so I got a new one of those too.

Replacing the pulley was easy. The belt was very difficult to get threaded in place and pulled over the pulleys. I finally used a long handled 15mm wrench to get the tensioner down far enough to get the belt pulled over the tensioner pulley.

Checked another vehicle and saw what I think was a crack all the way through the side, so I thought I could use my new found skills and replace that one too - unfortunately it's not going to be that easy - see the frozen tensioner thread.

Thanks for your help on this one.
fanbelt