Adjuster pulley

[Dominus]

I just changed out my alternator and have a feeling the adjuster pulley isn't back to where it should be despite my attempts to return it to where it started. Just how far down the slide (like in inches) is the pulley supposed to be? The Belt seems to have the right amount of tension, but I swear the pulley looks like its further in then when I started. Anyone know?

[Psychosis5150]

As long as the belt is routed properly, and tight enough there is no real "right" distance for the tensioner to sit. I wonder if the pulley on the alternator you just put in is the same size as the old one?

[Dominus]

I believe it is the same size. If there is any difference it couldn't be more then a millimeter.

[Dominus]

One significant problem though is that I changed the alternator believing it was bad for a number of reasons. One of these reasons was that the warning light, battery light and break warning light would come on intermittently which I was told was a sign the alternator or battery could be bad. I replaced the battery. That did nothing. Now I replaced the alternator and if anything the warning lights are coming on more often. They come on blink maybe three times and disappear.

[Psychosis5150]

Mine did pretty much the same thing when the rubber in the crank pulley failed, allowing the outer ring to slip and not drive the accesories. By the time I noticed it the outer ring had almost worn through the timing belt cover, and was working its way off. You might want to take a look at that, other than that I'd check all the electrical connections at the alternator, starter, battery, and ground. Good luck and post what you find, it might help narrow down the problem.

[odepaj]

the old belt was probably stretched out a bit. as long as the tension is good, then your fine

when putting on a new belt your supposed to run it for awhile and then tighten as needed and then its good to check it again acouple days later just to make sure its still tight. i have to do this everytime i put new strings on my bass, they just stretch.


dustin

[SA SVX]

Another thought may be the voltage regulator. They go in and out before they finally die. Good investment is a battery charger with the alternator check function on it (Walmart $60 or so) gives you a charger and a diagnostic device all is one package.

Dustin, hows the closet coming? LOL

[odepaj]

Originally Posted by SA SVX

Another thought may be the voltage regulator. They go in and out before they finally die. Good investment is a battery charger with the alternator check function on it (Walmart $60 or so) gives you a charger and a diagnostic device all is one package.

Dustin, hows the closet coming? LOL

haha, its finally clean. but then after that I had to get dirty we just got a new deck on the front of the house so I had to move all the blocks we had laid down as a walk way, and of course its been raining lately so I currently have some lake front property. [/hijack]


dustin

[Clydesvx]

If you got the NEW tensioner from SUBARU you must adjust the belt tension before tightening the tensioner bolt. If you tighten the bolt first the belt tension will not be correct. My warning lights would blink a few times after I put in the new tensioner and started driving. I ignored it until I smelled the belt heating up.

[Dominus]

Originally Posted by Clydesvx

If you got the NEW tensioner from SUBARU you must adjust the belt tension before tightening the tensioner bolt. If you tighten the bolt first the belt tension will not be correct. My warning lights would blink a few times after I put in the new tensioner and started driving. I ignored it until I smelled the belt heating up.

Wait, I am confused When you say tensioner bolt you mean the bolt that screws it counterclockwise and sits at 1 and 7? If that is correct then I did it the right way. I tightened that bolt first and then tightened the pulley.

[Psychosis5150]

Sounds like you did it right

[Clydesvx]

I had a dyslecsic moment. The tensioner I was talking about is on the other side of the engine controlling power steering tension. The alternator is pretty straight forward and it sounds like you got it right. The power steering adjustment is the one that you cant fully tighten until you set the belt tension. The extra drag it put on the engine caused my alternator lights to flicker. Sorry for any confusion.

[Hocrest]

Originally Posted by Dominus

...Now I replaced the alternator and if anything the warning lights are coming on more often. They come on blink maybe three times and disappear.

Check the wiring leading to the alternator. After all these years the insulation on most SVX's I've seen has become very brittle. It's possible that you have some exposed wires that make contact when you hit a bump, and thats what is causing the flashing dash lights. Check not only the heavy wire that gets bolted to the alt, but also the two smaller wires that plug into the alternator.

Also a good way to check to see if your crank pulley is slipping is to use a paint pen to make a mark on the face of the pulley. Make a line across all three layers (inner pulley, rubber bushing, outer pulley). If after running the car, those marks move out of alignment, you'll need to replace that pulley.

[Mr. Pockets]

I just moved this post from 'babble' to 'tech.'

Please post in the appropriate forum.

[Dominus]

Originally Posted by Hocrest

Check the wiring leading to the alternator. After all these years the insulation on most SVX's I've seen has become very brittle. It's possible that you have some exposed wires that make contact when you hit a bump, and thats what is causing the flashing dash lights. Check not only the heavy wire that gets bolted to the alt, but also the two smaller wires that plug into the alternator.

Also a good way to check to see if your crank pulley is slipping is to use a paint pen to make a mark on the face of the pulley. Make a line across all three layers (inner pulley, rubber bushing, outer pulley). If after running the car, those marks move out of alignment, you'll need to replace that pulley.

Thanks I think I'l try both of these things. If the wires are exposed can I wrap them in eletrical tape to stop them from contacting?