[RexCars]

Daughter brought home the Blue Car with the alternator belt so loose I can rotate the alternator and the belt slides over the pulley on the crank.

I have to say this is one part of the 164 I hate. Why didn't Alfa just have the alternator swing on a little steel bracket like everyone else? The stupid aluminum sliding plate is held down by something like 4 bolts, one of which is long and passes through a bracket that holds the bottom of the alternator.

This bolt terminates in a nut under the exhaust manifold, making adjustment of the sliding plate a bear if you don't have a lift. A captive nut on the back end of this bolt would make this whole job a lot easier. Especially as this bolt is not the pivot point (which is up high) but instead is located in one of the slots of the sliding plate.

Its 20 degrees Fahrenheit outside. I am charging the battery so that tomorrow it can go to the corner shop that has a heated work space and a lift.

Daughter also reporting other electrical glitches, including intermittent tachometer and radio. But with voltage now below 12 volts, these may go away when the belt is re-tightened or replaced.

Sigh!

OBTW: Happy New Year, all!

 

[144]

You're fixing it?

This is the age of liberation and equality, right?

 

[pinino]

I'm suffering the same 20°. If you have the car on a flat surface I discovered a neat one-man technique (using scrap wood) to tighten the alternator bolts while keeping the belt snug. Here's a rough drawing (vertical piece of wood has to be set on that slight protrusion on the front of alternator) :

 

[RexCars]

Very cool concept to raise alternator. My concept is simpler: recharge battery, drive car to local mechanic who has a shop with heat and lift, pay him to do the rest.

Thanks,
Rex

 

[Del]

" If you have the car on a flat surface I discovered a neat one-man technique"

I like that, lol. I have used a two foot long screwdriver leveraged against the front cross member, using a piece of wood for protection of that part.

That nut back behind the manifold is difficult to get to all right. 13mm combination wrench works on everything, but hard to get it back there. I can see it with my inspection mirror. Yes, should have been a different design, some sort of retention? The one in my 91S is actually a little loose.

 

[RexCars]

Well it turns out that the bearing on the idler pulley for the serp belt is shot. Again! I just replaced the **** thing 6 months ago. Didn't over-tighten it either.

And of course all the usual outlets took the day off, so I can't order a new one until Monday and it won't be here until Tuesday even with FedEx.

At least its small enough it won't cost that much to FedEx.

 

[144]

What brand of bearing was it?

 

[Alfisto Steve]

You can your a Ford pulley, too. See this link: http://www.alfabb.com/bb/forums/164-168-1991-1995/24288-164-12v-accessory-belt-idler-substitute.html

http://www.amazon.com/Motorcraft-YS233-Pulley-Lincoln-Mercury/dp/B000C5C588?tag=viglink23432-20

 

[jc96]

My luck, I'd do a Harry Reid on myself and bust my chops with the board. Cool idea tho. Mr John, i bet your head wants to explode on a regular basis. i know mine does. ciao. jc

 

[Rick1803]

The link in post #8 talks about an alternative pulley, Dayco 89007. The outside diameter of 89007 is 3", the stock pulley is 2.75". Will the stock belt (5070425 or 425K7) fit with pulley 89007?

Also, the bearing in the stock pulley looks nice, bigger/better. Is there something special about that bearing? Is it a single row ball bearing?

 

[Del]

I'm running a Dayco right now just for kicks. You do have to fiddle with spacers/bushings on either side to get the location correct on the swing arm and the pulley itself centered. No big deal. No belt changes.

"the bearing in the stock pulley looks nice, bigger/better"

If you mean the idler pulley bearing that is OEM, yes it is bigger but single row, and it fails mostly because the standard lube eventually dries out from the heat in the 164 hot engine bay (compared to the cooler bays in the Milano and GTV6) and then the bearing seizes. Ask me how I know this. I don't know if the Dayco will have the same problem.

One thing I've tried is the Fiat double row bearing idler pulley with maybe limited success. It fits just fine, although I had to make new spacers for it. The problem is that while it still seemed to work fine (it should, except for also having the standard 180F lube) when I pulled it off because I thought it was making some sort of noise. The bearing balls seemed loose in the races, as if there was no lube. Weird. I may have Jason try to repack it with the special high temp lube.

So...now for kicks I'm trying the inexpensive Dayco pulley. We shall see. I do have a couple of the standard OEM pulleys, one with the high temp lube, so no worries, but once burned, out in the middle of nowhere...

 

[CMalfa]

You know, I finally found this post, with the Rube-Goldberg design using specially cut pieces of wood for tightening the alternator belt, and I don't think it would work on my Alfa with all of the other stuff running underneath and around the alternator and no "bump to put the wood on.
So I finally ended up just using a pry bar at the top of the alternator bracket and against the front body to get the alternator belt somewhat tighter, and, since it's an Alfa, that's about as good as I can get it.
Unless of course I use the recommended method of pulling the engine to tighten the alternator belt.

 

[Alfisto Steve]

As for alternator belt adjustment you have to loosen three M8 bolts in front of head and one nut on long bolt (all 13mm socket size) and one 17mm nut on long bolt. then lift alternator and mounting bracket with lever over top of frame near hood latch hole in top frame.