[schwaebz98]

havent posted here in a while, but im in a jam. my car speaks, its not the belt, or alternator(my wallet fixed that) , and i later found out the sound was coming from the idler pulley. makes sence, so i install the new and and guess what, squeak squeak squeak.

thought, it is not nearly as loud as before, so is the new pulley just breaking itself in. without thinking i sprayed some WD40 on it, and it only made it louder, didin't need any more lubing i take it

could it be my belt is off track, or the pullies are dirty?

[grimmreaper1221]

from my experience, the pullies are dirty... try taking them off, clean them up, and then lube them back up and pop 'em back on, that should do it. also in doing this, you might straighten the belt if perhaps that is the problem and it is off track. good luck!

[schwaebz98]

i take it some break cleaner would do the trick? i have also noticed that after a while the squeaking does go away, yet on a cold start, its back

[RandyStinchcomb]

check the belt tensioner, Ford used an aluminum belt tensioner and they were prone to bend or bowing outwards causing all kinds of belt issues....there is a revised belt tensioner kits for 1999 on back and the tensioner arm is steel and les likely to cause belt/pulley/noise issues...the revised tensioner kit is Ford part # XR3Z-6B209-DB

[schwaebz98]

well, i just figured out its my tensioner pulley, what should i do about it, replace the pulley?

[RandyStinchcomb]

Originally Posted by schwaebz98

well, i just figured out its my tensioner pulley, what should i do about it, replace the pulley?

does your tensioner have a "silver" looking aluminum arm on it or the "black" stamped steel tensioner arm
if it has the orginal aluminum arm, you really should look into replacing the whole thing wth the kit # I posted about in post #4,
if it Does have the black steel tensioner on the car, then yes you can just buy and replace the pulley

[schwaebz98]

Originally Posted by RandyStinchcomb

does your tensioner have a "silver" looking aluminum arm on it or the "black" stamped steel tensioner arm
if it has the orginal aluminum arm, you really should look into replacing the whole thing wth the kit # I posted about in post #4,
if it Does have the black steel tensioner on the car, then yes you can just buy and replace the pulley

mines black, time to get another pulley then, anyone have a write up?

[RandyStinchcomb]

Originally Posted by schwaebz98

mines black, time to get another pulley then, anyone have a write up?

all you need todo then is unbolt the tensioner and then un-bolt the pulley from it...
now you can usually get a replacement bearing at a parts store or buy a whole new pulley wth brg....

[racin366]

Don't use brake parts cleaner on any bearing if your not going to repack them, it will make them fail sooner. WD-40 isn't real good for things that have a load on them, its very lightweight stuff that doesn't stay for long or lube well.

[Termn8torVert]

I would replace the entire tensioner arm and all. The springs in those tensioners start to weaken over time anyway. It will be easier to replace the whole thing then trying to loosen that pulley nut anyway. Its a quick swap and the entire piece is probably less then $60.

[schwaebz98]

well, i replaced the tensioner pulley and the idler pulley and.....


it still squeaks and the tensioner arm isn't bent(i have the black one)

im in a pickle

[schwaebz98]

and the noise is coming from them, mainly the idler for some reason