FlamingGoatBalls Posted May 5, 2004 Report Share Posted May 5, 2004 Are they for real? How am I supposed to get this belt of and the new one on?!??! There isnt enough room to fart under the hood of this thing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jgr7 Posted May 5, 2004 Report Share Posted May 5, 2004 Guru had a good tip, get a 3ft piece of copper tube and bend it over 1in from one end and flatten that end. You can then use it to push and pull and move the belt around the various pullies. Jeff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pos2nat Posted May 5, 2004 Report Share Posted May 5, 2004 I recently changed my belt....what a doozy. I broke the tensioner by putting too much stress on it when putting on the new belt. I recommend removing the battery for more operating room. carefully thread the belt on the crankshaft and ac pulleys and then move up to the idle, alternator and power steering pulleys. I think leaving the tensioner pulley for last is the easiest way, you can hook it with some tool and slide it on when you rotate the tensioner, do not put too much pressure on the breaker bar, the tensioner snaps like a twig. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlamingGoatBalls Posted May 5, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 5, 2004 Im not sure I can see down there well enough to put a new belt on.GRRR Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted May 5, 2004 Report Share Posted May 5, 2004 Its a tricky thing (especially for old geezers like me with bad eyes for close up work), but if you are patient, it goes pretty smooth I think. I once did it in the dark with a flashlight on the interstate. I really think you get better with it with practice. I actually used a breaker bar instead of a ratched handle as you can control it better. If you can get someone to hold the breaker bar while you feed the belt I think you are better off. The suggestion to remove the battery is a good one. Start the wet noodle on the crank and come up from there. Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JBuckley Posted May 5, 2004 Report Share Posted May 5, 2004 I agree with the suggestion of removeing the battery, it makes it alittle easier to see what you are doing, but you can do it with out removing the battery if you just take your time and make up the little helper that Guru suggested. take a 3 ft section of tubing and curve a 3inch section and slightly flatten to help with placing the belt aroud the various pulleys. I also used a 1/2 breaker bar to unload the tensioner, be careful here, the tensioner is aluminum and you can screw up the 1/2 opening. When I changed mine I found out that the dealership had not placed the bar in securely and it had slipped and messed up the square opening so that my 1/2 breaker bar would not stay in place. I had to remove the tensioner and take a file to it to repair the opening. I am going to replace the tensioner on the next go round. Just take your time and you can replace the belt with no problems, also have you checked your waterpump belt while you are at it. John John Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
growe3 Posted May 6, 2004 Report Share Posted May 6, 2004 Eaisest way for me was to remove right front tire and splash guards. With tire off it takes about 5-10 minutes to loop it around. -George Drive'em like you own 'em. - ....................04 DTS............................ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FlamingGoatBalls Posted May 6, 2004 Author Report Share Posted May 6, 2004 Good idea with the tire removal. I think Ill do that. Thanks guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scotty Posted May 6, 2004 Report Share Posted May 6, 2004 I may have spoken too soon above about how easy changing the belt was, it was very easy on my 91 I tried to see if my tensioner was binding and could not get any 1/2 wrench or breaker bar to go into the tensioner as the AC plumbing was in the way, see photo, any ideas?, detach any fasteners holding the pipe nearby?, remove the wheel? I'm all ears! By the way, there is actually less room on this Deville/NS then on my 91 Seville, now I understand some of the reasoning the water pump on the left side. Dropping the carriage to do a water pump in your back yard for us DIYs would take more than an AFTERNOON and a few cut knuckles! LOL.... Anyway, I was outside with a hose listening for my whining Northstar, and still can't quite localize it. It sounds like the front bearing in the alternator to me but I could not confirm that yet. The car was at operating temp and I decided to turn off the AC and see if that made any difference (its never off). While I knelt there listening, I realized that the noise went away and the engine was nice and quiet. Odd, I had not noticed that the noise went away before. I listened for about 5 minutes NO WHINE. By the way, Tuedsay I put a 2 oz oil charge in the system and the compressor is noticably more quiet, I am going to have the system evacuated by a good AC shop soon now that the oil made a difference. I turned the AC back on, and still no whine. Still hunting for the whine. I can see you could throw parts at this whine.... I know however that once I find and fix the SOB it will be GONE for awhile.... Mike Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmac-etc Posted May 7, 2004 Report Share Posted May 7, 2004 I had the same issue on my 95 etc. There is a tool that is made for this. It's just like a breaker bar but the bar part is flat steel and has a thin profile. Any auto part store will have an over priced kit (~$30) that has the tools needed for most applications. (Don't tell anyone, but I bought one and was able to remove the tool from the package , use the tool then return it - just a staple held it the package together). Any guilt was mitigated by virtue of the hundreds I had spent on the power steering pump and wheel hub bearing assy that I had that day purchased. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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