new day but a different problem

morosemofer · #1 05-22-2008, 12:24 PM

hey guys ive got another new problem. the idle pulley between my a/c and my power steering pump is squealing really bad. i know that the bearings in the pulley are probably going bad but it also looks like the bolt holding it on is crooked almost like its cross threaded. i do know that it is not cross threaded because i loosened it just a lil and it wasnt hard to turn. im a lil worried because i dont know if the mount for the pulley is messed up and i dont know if i can just rethread it or wat. the mount itself i believe is part of the block or head so i know i cant just get a new one. i know that i can get new bearings but i know if i dont fix the crookedness it will just mess up the new bearings and i dont just want to half fix it.

Andytron · #2 05-23-2008, 04:49 PM

I am not sure what year or model Jeep has this issue or even what engine you are dealing with. However on the 4.0L engine the idler pulley is easy to replace and costs less that $20 if I remember correctly. I've replaced several and they were no problem. I think they are threaded into the A/C compressor bracket. If the threads are wrecked a helicoil repair or other threaded insert might work.

morosemofer · #3 05-23-2008, 06:03 PM

yeah i wasnt thinking it is a 93 cherokee sport with the i6 4.0L i put a new pulley on but its stilll squealing like a stuck pig. would you happen to know where i could find a new a/c bracket cause instead of trying to fix the one i have another question is if my belt is wore out it will squeal but im not sure if its my belt or not. it really only does it when im under 2000rpms. it seems to stop after that. so im still not sure if its the belt or if the bolt on the pulley being crooked isnt putting even pressure on it so its just putting too much stress on it and its wearing it out. cause when i put the new pulley on it stopped till the engine warmed up then it started again. im usually pretty good at troubleshooting probs but this kinda has me stumped.

Andytron · #4 05-23-2008, 09:57 PM

A worn or loose belt can squeal from slipping. A replacement bracket can likely be found in a local junkyard. A couple of questions, are you sure the belt is tight enough (or maybe too tight)? Are you sure it was the idler pulley making noise and not something like a water pump or alternator bearing?

morosemofer · #5 05-24-2008, 10:08 AM

the water pump and the alternator are both new i did them not too long ago. that is when i noticed that the pulley bolt was crooked but i never had the squeal till i took it off to do the water pump and i reinstalled it. as for the belt i think its tight enough ive had a couple people i know give me there opinions on it and they think its fine. but i did notice that when i tried to loosen or tighten the tension bolt i didnt seem like it tightened or loosened the belt. im not excetally sure how the whole steering pump tension thing works for sure but i drove it like 200 miles already after doing the idle pulley and im not overheating or losing voltage on the batt.

Andytron · #6 05-26-2008, 05:22 PM

IIRC there should be three bolts and a nut that you need to loosen before you can adjust belt tension. After that, its easy.

morosemofer · #7 05-26-2008, 05:38 PM

not sure what iirc means but as far as i can see there are two bolts on the back of the steering pump then there is a nut on the bottom and the tensoin bolt that looks like it threads into the nut but im not sure where the third bolt is. unless your talking about the other versoin of the steering pump b/c my buddy has a xj that is a 94 but the belt tensoin is a completely different setup. i know that my jeep has had a newer engine put in it before i bought it but i dont know what year it may be but whenever i get parts for a 93 xj the parts i get match the ones i have. i love my jeep but it confuses the crap out of me.

Andytron · #8 05-27-2008, 07:48 PM

IIRC: If I Remember Correctly. The third bolt is the pivot bolt above the P/S pulley. I think the belt tensioning setup was the same for the 4.0L engines in the '89, '91, '92, '93 and '95 I have worked on. Newer than '95 and I have no idea.

morosemofer · #9 05-27-2008, 11:12 PM

ahhah! always suspected that bolt but it just seemed too obvious. man you are a great help and i really appreciate it, i just wanna say it took me about a week of searching the net for all kinds of things relating to jeeps and this forum is a virtual gold mine. ill try it out with a new belt which i just discovered today was about twenty-five bucks (not 60 like an s-10 that i had previously) and let you know how it goes. once again thank you for all the help.

Andytron · #10 05-28-2008, 09:03 PM

You are welcome. I hope we can be of some service to you in the future. You should have been here when this board was good. It had basically died of late. But with new members, maybe we can bring it back.