Posted this in another forum...but thought maybe this would be quicker...Was checking the engine to see if everything was in line and noticed this pulley (the darker one) was not spinning once the engine was running...basically the belt is skuffing that area up on the pulley...would this have anything to do with the heater core not working??

 

i think that is the idler pulley. dont have nothing to do dirrectly with the heater, but the belt slipping on the pulley will burn up the belt in a couple hours if pulley and bearing are not replaced. If the belt is slipping badly, it could affect the water pump speed--- maybe?

 

I doubt it. I think the one your are talking about is just an idler pulley. The one below it is the belt tensionor. Should just be an easy pulley swap. It looks like a Ford 4.6 liter. Depending on mileage, I'd change the serpentine belt as well. Make sure you check all of the other accessory pulleys to see if they spin freely before you put the belt on. I just changed my belt today, and this is exactly what I saw when doing my truck. Belt was $28 and tool rental is free if you bring it back. Feed the belt thru the idler and tensionor first, much easier to install when you do that first.

 

ya its the pulley above the tensioner pulley...and it is a 4.6 with about 123K on it...is it hard replacing the pulley? so it is an "idler pulley"?

 

Yea, simply remove the belt from around the pully and unscrew the screw. Screw the new one in. Be sure it isn't moving though(maybe touch the edge with u're finger). I've replaced idler's and they really look like they aren't moving when infact they are..... Pull the belt and spin it by hand.

 

can I get one at like autozone or is a dealer only item?

 

I've seen boneyards w/ barrels of these idlers from anything from a go-cart to an airplane. Might want to try that option. I know Autozone sells the tensioner, but sure about the idler. Call them and ask.

 

well its official...i need a new pulley...on my way to a friends house, sitting at a stop sign when i hear this "bang" and a puff of smoke come out of the hood...i then quickly pulled over popped the hood and sure enough the pulley was completely gone...fortuntly i could still drive it home...i found the pulley in the street so i picked that up...but it sure scared the heck out of me...

 

Well that's a troubleshooting method nobody thought of. Were you able to get a new one?

 

Im going to pick one up today...although I wasnt able to find the bolt to hold it in...do you think they would sell the bolt too?

 

I’d be a lil worried the bolt snapped off in the hole, but then again maybe it just unscrewed itself. The bolt itself shouldn’t be terribly hard to come by.

 

Yeah,
Check the hole that the bolt threads into...if it isnt a hole anymore it broke off and its time for the good ole easy out. If it came out part way and the pulley broke then the threads may be stripped as well.
-Chris

 

update...ok so i went to my local Napa store and picked up a pulley for 30 bucks, but they didnt sell the bolt, and everywhere else was pretty much closed. So my only option was to return the place where it happened. LUCKILY i found the bolt intact with perfect threads still! Thankfully it backed itself out of the hole cleanly and went right back in snug with the new pulley. The job only took about 10 min to put back together. I got lucky...now to fix my heater coil ...thanks for all your help...knew you guys would pull through!!

jason