Harmonic Balancer

[tsiboost14]

hello fellow dsmers i ran into a problem the other day i was driving my 97 talon tsi and the powersteering belt came off for some reason. the belt also runs my alternator so i had no juice. i had to get the belt back on along the road which was a pain. once i put the belt back on i noticed when i started it it started squeeking badly but then would stop after a little. i also noticed my harmonic balancer pully wheel was wobbleing in and out quite a bit. i tried getting it home but it did not work. i poped the hood open and pulled on the belt and i litterally could see my harmonic balancer pully completely moving. it was almost broken off it looks like. at like a 70 degree angle. does anyone know what it would most likely be? is it the balancer or the sprocket behind the crank pully?

 

[pauleyman]

Well documented known failure. Harmonic balancer rubber insulator fails. Get a new one. Don't drive it like it is. If the outer ring goes inboard it can take out everything.

 

[boosting_pwr]

It's needs to be replaced. It's probably just old and worn out. Our vendors on here can get you a new one for a good price.

 

[99GS_Turbo]

Well documented known failure. Harmonic balancer rubber insulator fails. Get a new one. Don't drive it like it is. If the outer ring goes inboard it can take out everything.

This...I just had a similar problem...I ended up getting a new one and I havent had a problem since

 

[KFred 513]

Hey I'm not sure if your in the market to spend some money but I've got the fluidampr on my car. It's real nice. The PO of my car put up a video of the difference between stock and the fluidampr balancer. Check it out if your interested

[ame=http://youtu.be/yzwr5Drhp3A]4G63 Fluidampr vs underdrive pulley - YouTube[/ame]

 

[ceedawg]

Go Ati better than fluidamper ,stock and underdrive aftermarket.
Just pricier but you get what you pay for.

 

[spyderdrifter]

My balancer broke on my first Spyder. Like everyone else has said, get a new one and don't drive your Talon until you do. If your Talon is your DD, you caould even get a new balancer from a salvage yard as a temp to make your Talon drivable. Then get a new one. Easy to swap out though.

Hey I'm not sure if your in the market to spend some money but I've got the fluidampr on my car. It's real nice. The PO of my car put up a video of the difference between stock and the fluidampr balancer. Check it out if your interested

4G63 Fluidampr vs underdrive pulley - YouTube

Makes a big difference in the harmonics. I'll be getting one of these for my race build.

 

[tsiboost14]

is it east to install??? do i have to drop the motor or can i just take of my tire and go in from the side?

 

[tsiboost14]

i tried jacking my car up and taking off the drivers front wheel to get to the balancer but its to far forward do i need to pull my motor??? whats the best and easiest way to do it??

 

[Selling4G63TParts]

I hate those stock balancers man. I swapped mine out for one piece aluminum set up. The stock ones separate due to a design.

 

[Diamond Star Werks]

I hate those stock balancers man. I swapped mine out for one piece aluminum set up. The stock ones separate due to a design.

You better learn to love them if value the life of your engine. Its called a harmonic DAMPENER for reason. It suppresses the vibration harmonics on the crank caused by the pistons.
Without the dampener there is no way to surpress the harmonics letting them reak havoc on your crank which will bend and eventually break your crank. It gets worse the more power you make.
You fancy aluminum pulley is nothing more than a pulley. It will eventually be the death of your engine. No one should ever use them on any performance vehicle. The stock ones aren't life time pieces and should be replaced every 100k at the very most. I'd recommend every 60'000 miles.

 

[snowborder714]

I hate those stock balancers man. I swapped mine out for one piece aluminum set up. The stock ones separate due to a design.

I've been deleting your fluff posts but I'm going to leave this one. Swapping out for an aluminum crank pulley is only a good idea on an N/T. Using that on a turbo DSM is bad news. You just swapped for a part that has no dampening capability. If you don't like the OEM unit, a Fluidampr or ATI are the only suitable replacements.

 

[Diamond Star Werks]

i tried jacking my car up and taking off the drivers front wheel to get to the balancer but its to far forward do i need to pull my motor??? whats the best and easiest way to do it??

You need to put a jack with a piece of board on the oil own and take the weight of the driver side motor mount then let it down. That will give the room you need. And only undo thr 4 12mm bolts not the 22mm.

 

[T is for TURBO]

I hate those stock balancers man. I swapped mine out for one piece aluminum set up. The stock ones separate due to a design.

I would take a stock damper over an aluminum underdrive pulley any day of the week.

http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/1513989-post386.html

 

[pauleyman]

I didnt have to lower anything and my motor mounts arent broken. I just did this six mos ago.

 

[Diamond Star Werks]

Shouldn't have to lower anything correct, but he is obviously having trouble so itd make it plenty easier on him.

 

[tsiboost14]

thanks guys and yeah i have a 97 tsi completely built that is except the balancer . thanks for the help guys

 

[tsiboost14]

finally got to it its been harsh weather lately. i got everything except the balancer itself off. whats the best way to get the balancer bolt off? i tried hand cranking it but it just moves the whole cam belt setup so i held the cam gear bolt with a wratched and tried doing it again but its really on there. should i just use an impact gun? would it take it right off?

 

[snowborder714]

To remove the damper, you only have to remove the 4 8mm bolts, not the large bolt in the center. That holds the crank sprocket to the crank and has nothing to do with the damper.

 

[tsiboost14]

oh ok. i took off the 4 bolts but it seemed really on there

 

[Colt4G63 also]

Things are not what they seem.

 

[snowborder714]

You might need to push on one side while pulling on the other and try to rock it off. You can use a rubber mallet to help if need be.

 

[tsiboost14]

alright thanks guys really apretiatie it! does anyone live in center PA? if so come down the the car meet this saturday at 12 its in lancaster

 

[Colt4G63 also]

I would love to come out, but my tires say not to use them when its 19 degrees out.

 

[Diamond Star Werks]

To remove the damper, you only have to remove the 4 --12--mm bolts, not the large bolt in the center. That holds the crank sprocket to the crank and has nothing to do with the damper.

Fixed for you.