Belt tensioner bolt not doing squat

[threehorn]

Hi. I don't know much about cars but I've been helping my boyfriend with his '94 Eclipse for a few hours now, we only intended to change the alternator belt because it snapped last night. So, we go in to adjust the tensioner bolt and it's totally fine, in the horseshoe thing and everything but nothing seems to be happening.

We've got the lock bolt loosened and I'll hold the new belt taught toward the back pulley while he adjusts the bolt to see if the belt goes anywhere and nothing happens. What is the deal? Sorry if this is something totally freaking obvious but we are newbs with cars period, hence me posting in the newbie forum.

So what is going on here? Thanks

Okay we have resolved this issue but I'm not sure the method was conventional? We had to completely take off the tensioner and lock bolts with the little horseshoe plate and push the alternator ourselves. Which was extremely difficult. But is that the way it's supposed to work? I mean isn't that the entire purpose of the tensioner bolt? So we won't have to push the alternator up and down ourselves? I donno, guess I'll be posting here again soon when something else arises.
I donno about this car man, it's been a big troublemaker for us.

 

[1Gina2G]

hey there, could you take some pictures? I'd like to know what you mean by alternator tension bolt. Then again it appears you have a 1G turbo 7 bolt?

I have a 6 bolt block, with a 2g alternator in my 2g, the alternater simply has 2 support points. 1 is at the bottom, a relatively long bolt, that just keeps/makes the alternator inline with the block, and gets tightend with a nut after you adjust the alternator postion up top, witch is a short bolt that threads into the alternator, through the swing bar bracket.

you get the bottom bolt in without the nut, get the belt around the crank & water pump pulleys, use a relativeley long prybar to bring tension on the belt and tighten the top bolt, put the nut in the longer bolt below.

 

[rlacasse1]

The tensioner bolt should pull the altenator towards the front of the car, so you were correct to assume that.

The only issues I've ever had is as you tighten the tensioner bolt it may try to move upwards and come out of the bracket.

Also, make sure that your other altenator bolts are loose and that it is moving freely while you tighten the tensioner.