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[AB]

Great, thanks! Now how I actually torque it down without damaging the tensioner spring? Also, I think I did mention that the tensioner bounces around a bit at idle, but I wonder if that could be caused by bad pulley bearings or a under-torqued pulley.

[AB]

Alright, I did all the troubleshooting that I could think of:

• Slipped off the belt, spun tensioner pulley by hand. It’s a tight fit getting my hand in there and I can’t really spin it fast enough to hear anything. But, the side of the pulley facing the engine appears to have some imperfections (ie.: it’s not perfectly smooth).
  [li]Timing cover sounds like normal, quiet metallic sounds
• Put the stethoscope on every pulley and accessory I could with the engine running. I’m not sure if I got the water pump, because it’s buried deep in there and I can’t really get at it without a hoist.

[li]Put the stethoscope on the idler pulley bolt, tensioner pulley bolt and the tensioner unit while revving the engine by hand. It’s clearly loudest on the tensioner pulley bolt.

Edit: pic of alignment markings while engine is off.

[AB]

Thanks for all the helpful info, hondaguy.

The pulley for this tensioner is replaceable on its own. I have a PDF of the service manual for this car, which confirms that, but doesn’t give any advice on torquing it down other than the torque spec.

The tensioner body itself doesn’t move out of spec. However, it does bounce around slightly (maybe 1mm) at warm idle.

The noise definitely sounds rotational and I’m quite certain it’s originating from a pulley. I’m going to try and get my stethoscope on all the pulleys and on the timing cover this afternoon.

[AB]

[quote=”relative4″ post=201463]Pics might help.[/quote]
I’ll try to get some tomorrow. Cold as balls out there today 😛

[AB]

So, I just checked and I notice that the tensioner pulley can be jiggled by hand, with the belt on. I wonder if the shop under-torqued the pulley bolt (I’ve had to “clean up” after them before).

Before I go spending money on parts, I’d like to try and torque it to spec. Two problems with that:

1. The space is too tight to fit a torque wrench. I might be able to get in from underneath, or use the extension on my belt tool (although that will change the torque dialed in and I don’t know the math on that). EDIT: I may be able to just figure this out using the idler pulley bolt to check the torque setting with the extension and compare, since they’re both 41 ft/lb.

2. How can I torque it down when the bolt torque (41 ft/lb) exceeds the spring torque (27 ft/lb)? I don’t see anywhere to lock the tensioner. I guess I could just let the tensioner move to the end of its range, and then torque down the bolt, but I don’t want to wreck it.

[AB]

[quote=”relative4″ post=201421]Are you just replacing the pulley? You should replace the whole tensioner. The damping wears out, allowing the tensioner to oscillate. This leads to premature belt and pulley wear and of course noise.[/quote]
I’m not sure the tensioner itself is bad, though, and I’d rather not replace the whole expensive part if I don’t have to. When I replaced the idler pulley, the tensioner action was smooth and quiet.

[AB]

So, does anyone know the right procedure for replacing the tensioner pulley in this car? Can it be done without removing the whole tensioner assembly and bunch of other things?

[AB]

By “free spinning”, do you mean you removed the belt and spun them by hand?

I did do that, yes. But what I meant is that they’re the only pulleys that aren’t driving an accessory.

Listen with the engine running. Touch the stethoscope to the alternator, PS pump, tensioner, etc.

Oh, yes, I did do that with the alternator (not the pulley), it sounds… alternator-y? Normal, I think. Just a light swishy sound that I can only hear with the stethoscope.

If the tensioner was recently replaced with a Chinese unit, that could be the problem.

It’s a Gates unit. Made in Canada… or possibly just “assembled” in Canada with the bearings sourced from China, depending on what you read. I’m starting to think that may be the case. The Honda OEM idler pulley was clearly better constructed than the aftermarket unit it replaced (also a Gates).

[AB]

Thanks, I’ve actually used a stethoscope on bolts that secure the idler and tensioner pulleys. It actually seems loudest on the tensioner pulley, but that was already replaced recently (??). None of the other pulleys (alternator, water pump, A/C, crank) are free-spinning, so I can’t just put the stethoscope on those.

Also, this engine has a timing chain, not a belt.

[AB]

So, I had a mechanic buddy come along for a ride. He says it’s just the intake sound, nothing to worry about.

[Author]

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