Anyone know how to remove the tensioner pulley?
It doesn't say how to in the Haynes manual...

TOC Admin
Brando

hey brando you talkin of the pulley/bearing or the whole tensioner? i'l asume the latter. 3.8 and 3.3L is usually remove belt and remove a single 15mm (some are 13mm) bolt down the middle of the tensioner pivot point. if i remember correctly its from the front though some engines it's on the backside (pesky quad 4's and 4 techs) some 4 cylinders the tensioner is part of the whole bracket that bolts to the front of the head and holds the AC and alt/PS on the engines (pretty sure thats only RWD like s10's though)
dude regardless it's easy!

Hi Brando, All
In the past Haynes has been excellent help for do it yourself maintenance, but has been slowly going downhill for the last 20 or more years.
The factory shop manual is the best choice by far.
Downside is you'd never again get to post repair questions in your own forum.
Regards, Norm

Yea....I'll get one of those shop manuals one of these days...
I replaced the pulley, but I think I need to replace the whole tensioner as the thing still makes noise, just not as loud.

TOC Admin
Brando

Question, is there a way to remove the tension of the tensioner?
I replaced the pulley on it, but once I got it off the tensioner went straight to the power steering pump pulley, which I then ended up using a combination of a long flathead screwdriver and a prybar to get the new one on....it just didn't seem like the correct way to do it....

TOC Admin
Brando

those tensioners are self contained springs with built in travel stops if it went outside the normal travel area it is def bad! and most of the time a squeak that you hear when the arm moves is because the plastic "thrust washer" has worn through and aluminum is rubing on aluminum, though some backsides of the gm tensioners are steel, all have a tang that helps it locate correctly to the bracket it bolts to.

Ok...so it's not suppose to go that far...then yea...I definately gotta replace that thing.

TOC Admin
Brando

Brando, what kinds of noises was your tensioner making? My car has been making strange grinding noises at idle, and I am almost sure its coming from the belt-train somewhere.

How much was your tensioner pulley replacement?

The pulley was only $13, but that was with a discount (NAPA).
You could see the pulley move a little and it would make a grinding noise.

TOC Admin
Brando

I found out that the rough running that caused the tensioner to move so much was due to the fact that my PVC valve was bad. A quick $2 fix!

TOC Admin
Brando

wow, doesn't get much easier than that!

Yea....it turns out that it wasn't the PVC valve...although it does seem to run a little bit better....so I think that was bad too. But I found out, with a little diagnostics, that the MAF Sensor is bad. Which I will be replacing tomorrow seeing as NAPA isn't going to have it in stock til then.

TOC Admin
Brando

whats your price on the MAF? I think i ended up paying 130 dollars canadian. A new MAF will make your car purrr like new!

Well, I paid $43 for a reman MAF...internals were all new.
Turns out that wasn't it either, so I went back, and got an O2 Sensor after reading some things online. Now after installing the O2 Sensor, it has two error reports. One is the MAT Air Temperature is low...which is what I am going to replace. The next error code is MAP Low Manifold Air Pressure...weird thing is there is no MAP Sensor...so what's up with that? The TPS sensor reads .39 volts at idle, which is great as my shop manual says it should be between .36-.44. EGR is fine (recently replaced), PCV valve was just changed, IAC valve checks okay, Coolant Temp sensor reads okay, MAF sensor wasn't it....so I guess MAT it is.

Another thing is it runs great in the morning when it's really cold, but once it warms up, then it starts idling rough...and that damn tensioner assembly makes its unique noise...can't find a tensioner assembly anywhere, except for the pulley...so it looks like I'll have to go to the junk yard for that.

TOC Admin
Brando

Well...I replaced the MAT Sensor and that wasn't it either....
Disconnected negative terminal from battery for a while and now there are absolutely no codes, but it still runs rough. All the sensors seem to be reading correctly according to the computer...I guess maybe it's a vacuum leak...but wouldn't I hear it? Hmm... What else can cause a rough idle? Is there supposed to be suction at idle from the tube that connects the EGR Valve to the EGR Solenoid?

TOC Admin
Brando