Belt Squeal!!

[fixizin]

Does anybody know how to loosen the tension pulley on a 3.0 v6. My belt has a squeal and needs to be changed.

Thanks

You apply downward (clockwise) force to the nut that holds the pulley to the tensioner. They don't make it easy to get a ratchet+socket in there... a 15mm offset box-end wrench is just the ticket... yep, it's METRIC...( luckily the Angel of Dumb Luck followed me into Sears one day when a Craftsman five-wrench set was on big sale...)

Notice the WEAR BAND on the top of the fixed part of the tensioner, and the INDEX MARK on the moving arm of the tensioner. A new and properly sized belt should place the index at the far right end of the band... as belt ages and stretches, it'll move left.

 

[McCormack]

Ranger 3.0 serpentine belt squeal is usually caused by an out-of-alignment belt tensioner, and the cure is to shim the tensioner assembly back into alignment. Some people buy new tensioners and after installing them the tensioner is once again lined up... but a new tensioner won't necessarily be in alignment, so after installing it put a straight edge on it and if it's out of alignment then it needs to be shimmed straight.

The main cause of 3.0 tensioners going out of alignment is that some 3.0 Rangers come from the factory with their serp belts set up way too tight (they're so tight that it literally takes two people to get a new replacement belt installed), and the excess belt tension pulls the tensioner out of alignment. On my Ranger I noticed that the idler and tensioner pulleys were two different sizes, so I went to the parts store and got a pulley to match the smaller one on the tensioner, and after swapping pulleys my serp belt now fits perfectly and doesn't put nearly as much strain on the tensioner, and I haven't had any more tensioner alignment issues.

 

[TomB1269]

FYI; If you remove the belt and still get a squeal this is a big, very big sign that you have a syncro shaft problem. The syncro will squeal more when cold, less warm, in cold weather it will stop squealing in stop and go bet the squeal will return when yoiu come to a stop after driving at highway speeds for 10 or 15 minutes. It will can also manifest as a mis-fire that starts at high rpms and comes down the rpm scale as the engine warms but does not throw an engine code. Bouhght my truck used with 64k August 06 changed belt and tried all tricks to find squeal, replaced plugs fall 07 and noticed a small very light miss that I pushed and it got worse until I tried all and then took to Ford, they ran TSB tests for syncro that counts EGR cycling.

 

[fatboyf150]

im having the same problem with my 00 3.0 and my porblem seems to be worse when it rains or its real foggy outside. changed all the pullies and belt, just installed a new tensioner. what is this syncro shaft you are talking about? can i take a BFH to it? the squeal it getting on my nerves.

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

the syncro is on the back of the engine, towards the passanger side. it replaced a standard distributor.

you can take a BFH to it, but im quite sure that would be the end of your motor. hitting it with some spray lube would be more likely to help, but its a temporary fix and i'd still replace the syncro.

 

[bumbleb77]

I Finally Found It Was The Tensioner!!!!

 

[Hypnotic Toast]

im having the same problem with my 00 3.0 and my porblem seems to be worse when it rains or its real foggy outside. changed all the pullies and belt, just installed a new tensioner. what is this syncro shaft you are talking about? can i take a BFH to it? the squeal it getting on my nerves.

Mine did that too. It's either your Idler or Tensioner pulley/assembly. Can you describe the squeal? Does it sound like the belt is slipping or is a pulley?

Mine did it at first because before I replaced my Idler pulley, the factory one was still on there. The bearings were pretty much shot and it made a god-awful squeaking noise. Later on after replacing it is when my belt nightmare started and it turned out to be the Tensioner assembly.

Tell me, I know you said you replaced the Tensioner, but was it the pulley or whole assembly? And if so, then you might just try taking your belt off and rolling all your pulleys by hand to see if any make noise.

 

[WNY964x4]

yea , right now my truck has an intermittent squeal , it sounds like it comes from the back of the engine , and if i am accelerating when it starts i can let off the gas and it goes away , and i have not pinpointed the problem , and it is getting on my nerves

 

[Hypnotic Toast]

yea , right now my truck has an intermittent squeal , it sounds like it comes from the back of the engine , and if i am accelerating when it starts i can let off the gas and it goes away , and i have not pinpointed the problem , and it is getting on my nerves

That sounds like your cam synchro. Have you started the truck without the belt on? If it squeaks, then that is most likely your problem.

 

[WNY964x4]

well i am afraid of starting the truck without the belt on because as i said the squel is intermittent , and it happens when i am going down the road , and right now it is about 4 degrees out , so my battery would die in about 30 seconds , not enough time to run it enough to hear it

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

you could pull the CMP and hose it down with spray lube and see if that changes anything.

 

[WNY964x4]

ok , i will try that when i go back to class on monday , it is too cold out to try doin that yet . and is the cmp like a distributor in that it has to go back in the same position you pulled it out of ?

 

[Wicked_Sludge]

yes, it has to go back in exactly the way it comes out.

 

[WNY964x4]

okay , and will i possibly run into a problem ith the oil pump drive shaft , just tryin to cover all my bases here

 

[Jetinspector]

Just a little info on the belt squeal. I replaced the tensioner and belt back in Dec. Of course I wasn't useing the air until now. When I punched it on wow what a noise. I open the hood and saw that the belt was jumping around the alternator pulley. I beat feet down to a Checker store where I had purchased the tensioner and belt. Both were Goodyears the belt being a gatorback. I replaced them on warrenty no help. It seems that the listing for the belt is wrong at checker for a 4.0 v6 with factory air. The belt called for is to long by 1/2 and inch. The tensioner was bottomed out with the belt listed. The 1/2 inch shorter belt set the tensioner at mid range and allowed it to work as it was supposed to. No more squeal and everything is working as it should.
The belt called out at Checker is a Gatorback #4060875. This is wrong. It should be a 4060868. Works for me.