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Chris,
You can't fix the tensioner lever arm, you replace it. It's about $50 new. And do it ASAP, once it cocks far enough it can tear up the timing case which makes for a large, very expen$ive job. The tensioner arm is a known weakness of these engines. Expect to replace it every 50-100kmi, possibly less (I had one fail - leaking grease - after ~20k.) The shock has an incredibly short life span as well, sometimes as low as 10-20kmi. If leaking, or if the bushings are torn up, replace it. Rumor is the OE dealer shock lasts longer than the Bilstein or Febi aftermarket ones.
You may need a new idler pulley, depends on condition when you remove it. You WILL need both new plastic caps, but they're only about $1 each. There are special tools that make clutch removal easier (and much faster) but they're not required. Check the serp belt too while you're in there, if the ribbed area has cracks might as well change that too. When installing the new arm, either use blue LocTite or a non-hardening sealer, as the bolt hole goes into the oily timing chain cavity. MB specs "Omnifit Orange" but I've never bothered to buy that stuff. Just do NOT use red LocTite as some folks say! When all done you'll be set for a long time.
Last tip: The vacuum pumps are also a known problem on these engines. The original design was flawed. If your car has the original pump, replace it NOW before the bearing fails & dumps innards inside the crankcase (worst case it gets in the timing chain, destroying the engine). This is not a hard job but a new pump is $175 last time I checked at ***************...
Good luck,
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