cool thanks for that last post. i'll try my best to explain my problem. if you can tell me how to determine a bad tension pulley that may help. i first notice this problem with noise under the hood. once i popped the hood and inspected i saw idle pulley broken since then i have replaced that part.

further inspection and reading several posts on this site. i come to learn about the tension pulley. after repairing the idle pulley all the belts are very loose. i found the tension pulley and it's bolted on but can move freely left to right loosening the belt. if i grab the tension pulley and push it to the right it will tighten the belts but once i release the tension pulley it move to the left causing the belt to loosen up.

Does this mean that the i need a new tensioner assembly or is there a way to tighten it so the belts are tight.

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1998 C-280 4 Dr Sedan, Black, Automatic