Harmonic Balancer gone bad...happen to anyone else? [MERGE]

[sytrus]

I just solved this problem on my car.

First off, check your plugs for the start up.

Also, for the squealling, if it's a new alternator that might be the problem. I just got the new alternator also, and it started squealing so bad.

Look at the tensioner bolt... make sure it is not rising up, and that it is seated. Mine rose up. So.. tighten your belt.. then make sure you tighten the higher bolt as tight as possible, got rid of my problem.

 

[Defiant]

Harmonic balancer.

 

[jawsgst]

When coming from a stop or really low RPMs(less than 3000) I get what sounds like belt squeel till around 3-4k rpm then it stops till the car falls below 2k rpm for at least 30 sec to a min. I have checked both my power steering pump and alternator belts and tightened the power steering belt since it was loose. Neither are too tight. Any ideas why i might be getting the squeel? I am starting to think Power Steering Pump but not sure on how to diagnose that one. Help if you can. Thanks.

Jawsgst

 

[turbolover2]

Still sounds like the belts. They probably need to be changed anway, so it might be a good place to start.

 

[Defiant]

It just occured to me that it might be your harmonic balancer.

 

[TurboDSM86]

something that i have used in the past is power lube, or wd 40. spray this on the belt you think is the culprit. it should quiet it up. this also works well on pullies. another thing to try is to spray water on the belt. this should quiet it up for a minute. these are just a few things ive done in the past and have had very good luck with

 

[jawsgst]

He is another interesting thing happening. This seems to only occur when my headlights are on. I kinda got the idea of that on my way to work and tested it on my way home and when the squeeling starts up i turned off my headlights and the sound stopped. I did this about 10 times in a row so this is no coincedence. I will definitely be replacing the belts on Sat. to see if that works but with this new discovery if you all have any more ideas for me they would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[krazywhitboy]

He is another interesting thing happening. This seems to only occur when my headlights are on. I kinda got the idea of that on my way to work and tested it on my way home and when the squeeling starts up i turned off my headlights and the sound stopped. I did this about 10 times in a row so this is no coincedence. I will definitely be replacing the belts on Sat. to see if that works but with this new discovery if you all have any more ideas for me they would be appreciated. Thanks.

well then my thoughts would be something to do with the alternator belt. you are putting more of a load on it when you turn on the headlights.....

 

[jawsgst]

I replaced the alternator and alternator belt and made sure it was nice and tight but not too tight. Seems like it got rid of most my squeel but not all of it. Still seems to do it occasionally only when the headlights are on. My only thoughts are the power steering pump or the pulley that the alternator and the p/s pump share. What do you guys think. I am baffled!

 

[td06hkiko]

I just replaced my CrankPulley at about 93,000 miles. I had squeeking belts for about a week until one morning when I started my card My crank pulley Split in half and all the belts hit the deck. You can order a crankpulley from Mitsubishi for 153.00.

 

[neowave2109]

hey i just started to have the same problem with my dsm ...i never had that problem till i changed it when my ac belt broke off .....i went to auto zone and they gave me a biger belt that was not ment for my car ....so my best bet is that u buy a new one from pepboys cause i had this same problem with my mazda.... i bought 4 belts from autozone and the same problem ....so i went to pepboys and they told me who ever sold me that belt was on crack ! ....anyways after i threw in that belt noice went away ......i will threw on my new one 2marrwo tell you how it happens ....

 

[2GeNTSi]

My belts have been squealing lately as well...usually only when it's cold out. It never squealed at all before I replaced my alternator so I started out there and tightened the alt belt. It didn't really make a difference because sometimes after work I'll start the car to warm it up for a minute, and no noises would occur. But if I put a load on it by turning on the defrost, the alternator belt goes crazy.

Even my ps belt squeals ever since I moved it to access the alternator, almost every cold morning whlie warming the car up I have to spray the ps pulley a bit. I checked the haynes manual to see how much deflection the belt is supposed to have and it's in spec - 1/4 inch. It says for pulleys 7-12 inches apart the deflection should be 1/4" and for 12-14 inches apart - 1/2"...not sure if those are the correct figures but I'm pretty sure the ps belt should only deflect 1/4".

It's possible that the belt needs replacing but I dunno.

 

[2gGSX]

The question has probably already been addressed

It just occured to me that it might be your harmonic balancer.

It's funny, if you search harmonic balancer, 20,000 threads come up asking about why replacing the altenator belt doesnt help, and Defiant answers the question about 20,000 times

Yet no one seems to pay attention to him

 

[td06hkiko]

You need to change the Crank pulley. It is really a good idea. That causes the squeeking. 100% sure.

 

[XMasta19]

How much does that involve, cause I'm havin the squeelin action too! Gotta get rid of it, makes our dsm's look so pathetic when all you hear is that damn loud ass screeching all the time.

 

[highboosted98]

Dont spray wd-40 or gease on the actual belt, Get a dry bar of soap and hold it underneeth the belt for a few seconds untill the sounds goes away. Its a temp. fix, it worked quite well for me.

 

[XMasta19]

wow, never heard of that one before...guess i'll give it a go if I can remember to do so in the morning. well that, and if I'm not running late for work

 

[mkalters]

When coming from a stop or really low RPMs(less than 3000) I get what sounds like belt squeel till around 3-4k rpm then it stops till the car falls below 2k rpm for at least 30 sec to a min. I have checked both my power steering pump and alternator belts and tightened the power steering belt since it was loose. Neither are too tight. Any ideas why i might be getting the squeel? I am starting to think Power Steering Pump but not sure on how to diagnose that one. Help if you can. Thanks.

Jawsgst

My car did the same thing this is what I finally figured out.Well I took it to the 3rd mechanic and he says that the cam gaskets are shot and it is leaking oil and that probably is getting onto the belts causing them to slip. Any way he charged me $90 ( which really chaffs me cause he said $40 an hour on the phone and he said $60 an hour when I went to pick up the car.) to tell me that.So I am done with the car I put another new alternator on it advance gave me it cause the original one I got from them quit. It seems like it is running ok so I am gonna sell it and get a newer car.

 

[2GeNTSi]

I was due to rotate my tires, so I did that and afterwards I tightened the alt. belt. So far, so good.

But...I also checked for a leak coming from the clutch master cylinder, and unfortunately it is leaking. It's coming from the cabin side of the firewall, I got on the floor and started pumping the clutch pedal. I noticed some moisture on the rod coming leaking through the boot a bit, so time for a new one I guess...driving with brake fluid under your foot isn't fun.

 

[GSX0TIC]

My belts squeeled a little bit before....then by harmonic balancer broke. Replaced the harmonic balancer and all new belts. Oh BTW...my harmonic balancer broke at like 55k miles. Anyways my belts dont squeel but they are a bit loud....Like sorta like a clicking noise at cold startups then seem to quiet down after it warms up.

 

[KingAWD]

You should check your harmonic balancer. I had a belt squeak for about a week and when I was taking a clover leaf, I heard a pop and there went all my belts. I started to take them off and I found my harmonic balancer moving back and forth. I found the best price at the dealer. $135.00 including tax. Oh by the way make sure you replace all your belts.

Keep Boosting!!

 

[zimus]

the best price i got a crank pulley was $107 with tax. yea mine broke at abot 89,000 miles.

 

[flinguist]

Rock Auto ( https://www.rockauto.com ) has one for less than 60 bucks. Check under "engine-harmonic balancer".

 

[max517]

So for a while I have been trying to get my belts to stop making noise, but no matter how tight there would still be a squealing/whining noise coming from that area. Today as I was driving down the road suddenly just about every light on the dashboard comes on and I don't have powersteering anymore. It turns out every accessory belt has been thrown off my car, and one of them broken. After doing some searches here it seems like these symptoms oftenare caused by a bad harmonic balancer. I got my car back home and removed the pulley, however it was still in one piece. Does this mean it is still good, or can a pulley go bad without completely separating? If its still good does it just mean by bad luck one of the belts happened to break and take the others with it?

My car is a 1992 Plymouth Laser AWD turbo

Thanks

 

[steve]

Take a close look at the rubber that couples the inner hub to the outer pulley. If you see any signs of cracking replace it. If when it's on the car it wobbles, replace it.

Steve