So my old serpentine belt was pretty shredded on the engine side, so I decided to change it. Also, there were a couple small shreds of belt in random nooks and crannys.

I put on my new one, and now there's a clicking sound. With the motor off, I can climb under the truck and the S belt is misaligned at the crankshaft pulley. I push to realign, and it clicks into place.... Same sound it makes continuously while engine is running.

It's only at the crankshaft pulley... Is there a logical reason it's like this? Or is there a way to fix it? I guess the shreds of belt make sense.

 

So, the belt continues to slip off the crankshaft pulley, even after you re-align it? Or you re-aligned it once, and it makes the clicking sound anyway?

 

Yes, it continues to slip off and on. Seems to be with every pass of the belt.

 

I have seen the crankpulley seperate at the rubber causing belt misalignment. I have had several crankpulleys do that on diffetent makes. Look at it close and make sure the pulley hasnt shifted foward on you.

 

I thought the pulley mounted/bolted directly to the damper? Is there a rubber washer between them? Not sure what you mean by "separate at the rubber." Let me know, thanks!!

 

On my 96 f150 the crank pulley and harmonic balancer is one unit. Pulley is the outside of balancer. I have seen more than one seperate misaligning belt. My subaru done the same as well as a 94 toyota pickup

 

Your crank pulley IS bolted directly to the solid portion of the harmonic balancer that is mounted directly on the crank shaft.. There is NO rubber there, the only place there is rubber is between the portion the pulley is bolted to and the outer portion of the harmonic balancer (behind the pulley).

 

So is there a way to repair it, or do I have to replace the balancer/pulley unit?

 

Check the other pulleys that the belt rides on. One of the brackets could be loose or bent. The tensioner pulley could also be worn.
Regards
rikard

 

Even though the only place it catches is at the crank pulley?

 

The misalignment may not be the crank pulley and the tensioner is a known wear item. It would be very unusual for the crank to be misaligned or bent.
What year and engine?

 

I have had this happen on a 91 F150 and my 93 F150 both times the problem was cause by the tennsioner. The 91 broke in half as I unbolted it and the 93 separated as I unbolted it. I replaced both and now the belts ride true. Hope this helps!

 

It's a 91 f250 with the 5.8L.

What kinds of tests could I put either part under to see where the problem lies? It's either the balancer or tensioner, but both appear to be working fine by themselves.

Thanks so much for all your help, I'm excited to be learning all this!

 

I don't know of a test you could do but if your engine is running and you hear a ticking sound put your finger on the tensioner housing to see if you feel the clicking. Also take the belt off and unbolt the tensioner and see if it starts to separate.

 

Okay, I'll pull it off to check. But I can physically see the clicking on the crank pulley. I can see the belt catching, then slapping back on. I can also push the belt back on once I turn it off, and it makes a very forceful slap back into its groves. I bet it's the balancer.