systemmeister
Spa-Francorchamps
- Joined
- 25 Jun 2014
- Messages
- 324
I have the engine pulled from my '99 996 C2 at present, giving her a well-earned birthday (see my other thread).
I always thought the aux belt idlers looked and sounded like they'd seen better days.
The outer surface (over which the belt runs) is corroded on both idlers, and after removing said belt - I can feel wear in the bearings - again on both.
They looked like original fitments and ideally need replacement.
They are a little loose and sound like the wheels on a toy car.
Like they say "a fool and their money are soon parted" - so decided to see if there's a smarter way to do this job.
The list price for the idlers is £70-80 each....and that makes it expensive for some parts that could be refurbished.
The pulley is a pressed steel item and nothing really *special*.
After removing the pulley from the bolt, spacer/stand-off and cover washer, it leaves effectively two parts:
* The pulley
* The bearing
Using my 60-quid hydraulic press, the bearing of one pulley was carefully pressed out....without distorting the pulley itself.
The bearing is a "FAG" brand although the numbers mean zippo, I have managed to find the equivalent bearing - It's a dual deep race angular contact bearing with rubber seals.
There are plenty of bearing suppliers out there and I'm going to be on the phone to a couple on Monday morning, to see what options there are.
I see no real point me putting a bearing in there that'll be perfect beyond my lifetime, so I want to perhaps strike a balance of life & reliability versus cost.
If the FAG bearings are original - which I believe they are, then they have lasted 16 years and 86k miles.
I'm happy to get something that'll last say 50k, as the time to replace the bearing is a matter of less than an hour including removal of the belt.
Watch this space.......
I always thought the aux belt idlers looked and sounded like they'd seen better days.
The outer surface (over which the belt runs) is corroded on both idlers, and after removing said belt - I can feel wear in the bearings - again on both.
They looked like original fitments and ideally need replacement.
They are a little loose and sound like the wheels on a toy car.
Like they say "a fool and their money are soon parted" - so decided to see if there's a smarter way to do this job.
The list price for the idlers is £70-80 each....and that makes it expensive for some parts that could be refurbished.
The pulley is a pressed steel item and nothing really *special*.
After removing the pulley from the bolt, spacer/stand-off and cover washer, it leaves effectively two parts:
* The pulley
* The bearing
Using my 60-quid hydraulic press, the bearing of one pulley was carefully pressed out....without distorting the pulley itself.
The bearing is a "FAG" brand although the numbers mean zippo, I have managed to find the equivalent bearing - It's a dual deep race angular contact bearing with rubber seals.
There are plenty of bearing suppliers out there and I'm going to be on the phone to a couple on Monday morning, to see what options there are.
I see no real point me putting a bearing in there that'll be perfect beyond my lifetime, so I want to perhaps strike a balance of life & reliability versus cost.
If the FAG bearings are original - which I believe they are, then they have lasted 16 years and 86k miles.
I'm happy to get something that'll last say 50k, as the time to replace the bearing is a matter of less than an hour including removal of the belt.
Watch this space.......