I understand, ok, looking at my 91 engine that is fully assembled but not yet put back into the engine bay, I dont see the tensioner or pin in anyway interfering with the belt, and this model does not have the crank/cam sensor bracket, and you said the noise is at the water pump area, so get yourself a stethoscope, and place is directly on the water pump housing from the top since its hard to get to with the lower timing cover in the way, and let us know the verdict.
I see your located in the US is that correct? if you like you can call me anytime 775 229-5662
Is it an OEM water pump or did you get some off the shelf one that you have to use your old back housing?
Water pump is OEM from 3SX
I picked up a stethoscope. I didnât hear anything obvious coming from the water pump housing
What are your thoughts on my problem being a tensioner issue?
I found this video that shows a noise at each timing belt revolution and how he adjusted the tensioner to eliminate the noise.
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I did send you a message about it, it very well could be the issue, regardless it needs to be further investigated, with such a noise its not recommended to rev the engine let alone drive it. I would do the following if I was you for starters: remove the front valve cover, remove cylinder 1 spark plug, make sure the piston is at TDC on the compression stroke and NOT the exhaust ( a lot of people do that by mistake) and check all the timings marks, if there is no issues there then yes the belt keeps the required tension and has not skipped a tooth or two, however, considering this is a fresh build meaning you have not gone out on a road trip, no damage has occurred yet due to complete tensioner failure. In my PM to you I explained the theory of how the hydraulic tensioner works in conjunction to the applied required tension on the belt as soon as the oil pressure gets into the tensioner reservoir, and then there is an air release valve, interestingly that noise could very well be the sound of the air gushing out of the tensioner at each precise revolution of the belt. time to touch the tensioner with the scope. Not sure about this video clip you sent but I shall check it out, a faulty hydraulic tensioner ultimately needs to be replaced, or else you are playing with fire.
Thats funny i just read my message, I meant to say when the lubricant ( oil ) that is sealed inside the tensioner that has components that moves the tension pin up or down is activated when the belt starts to rotate moving the tensiner pulley assembly. I was thinking about other hydraulic tensioners that are directly provided with oil by the main component. These ones are sealed, sorry for that confusion.
yeah all he is doing is altering the tension on the belt to reduce that noise, bottom line is that the specific required tension in inch/ft pounds on the belt needs to be precise and consistent at all RPMâs and the tensioner needs to be replaced if its faulty.
I recentered my belt on the cams. After a few revolutions everything shifts to the right. Why does the belt keep shifting to the right??
Should there be a gap between the belt and the crankshaft pulley? What prevents these from rubbing?
If the belt keeps shifting then something is misaligned. Whether you have a pulley that is crooked or something else.
Your best bet, unfortunately, is to probably take the belt back off and go back over everything.
The water pump pulley allows the belt the freedom to move to the right edge of the cams. How would I adjust the water pump location?
Itâs a new water pump from 3SX as part of the 60K service kit for $600
The water pump being having a smooth pulley has nothing to do with your issue. Something is causing the belt to walk. I have seen it happen with alternator belts where a pulley was misaligned.
My serpentine belt on my Lancer has 3 pulleys that are smooth with âfreedom to moveâ and it doesnât move left or right, and it doesnât move at all because everything is true.
Could it be this tensioner arm causing the belt to walk? Itâs the only part I havenât replaced. I wonder if a bad tensioner arm could be the source of my noise too.
The tensioner arm is a possible cause of the belt drift but I havenât had one making a noise.
Iâm having a hard time getting the tension set to where it wonât change.
I rotate the tensiorer pulley so that the pin is loose, I tighten the tensioner pulley bolt to 48Nm. After tightening the bolt the pin is still loose to where I can remove it easily.
I step away for 2 minutes and the tension changes to where the pin is unable to be removed. What is changing the tension after everything is torqued down?? Itâs not a big tension change. If I back the torque down a little on the bolt, the pin moves freely again.
Do I need to rotate the crankshaft the 2 turns immediately after the pin is loose and not give it a chance for the tension to change?
The point of the auto tensioner is for it to go slightly slack after the car sits without running. The tension will change on its own no matter what you do. It is by design.
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After several failed attempts I have finally achieved perfect belt tension after rotating the engine 2 revolutions. Pin is easy to remove and even spins freely!
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wait did you not rotate it at all after putting the belt on?
The video was after rotating the belt
I mean the very first time you put the belt on and you were having that noise. Did you rotate it after you put it on the first time?