603 Belt tensioner shock frustration Aaaaarrrrggg!!!! - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

davidlee · #1 02-24-2013, 04:34 AM

I went to change the fan belt tensioner shock absorber tonight on my 87 300D, which looked like a pretty easy job until I found out that the bottom bolt hits the fan pulley millimeters before it is able to slide out.
what all is this going to entail now to get that bolt out?
should I just take it to the shop to have it done?
I wasnt aware that this was going to be a major operation. this sucks.

chazola · #2 02-24-2013, 05:36 AM

Fret not. If it's the same design as the 606, loosen the 3 fan pulley mounting bolts (they're only 10mm I think and not very tight) which will let you pull the pulley out just enough to get the shock bottom bolt out.

As with many things on these engines it'll take 10 times longer than it should do 'cause everything is packed in so tight, but it is doable.

davidlee · #3 02-24-2013, 01:58 PM

I will look, if so, back to work, thanks.

turbobenz · #4 02-24-2013, 02:01 PM

Remove the Fan and shroud.Do you know how the tensioner works?

davidlee · #5 02-25-2013, 02:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by turbobenz

Remove the Fan and shroud.Do you know how the tensioner works?

I'm pretty sure I know how it works, It has a center pivot with a spring on one side holding the belt tight and a shock absorber on the other keeping it stable.
I can see that fluid has drained out from the shock ,and now the tensioner and the belt both vibrate. So its time to change it. It just started vibrating last week, I cant feel it in the cabin but I sure can hear it. I was told that you have to loosen up the fan pulley bolts and slide the pulley slightly forward to give the tensiner shock bolt enough room to snake out from there, so I took a grinder to the box end of a 10mm wrench, making the head thinner so it can fit around the domed part of the pulley onto the fan pulley bolts. I have heard that you can easily round the heads of the bolts by using the open end of the wrench. I have not done this job before. so we will see how it turns out, the first attempt yesterday ended up with me cursing the person who designed the fitment arrangement. I thought i had it off up until I tried to pull the bottom shock bolt out and it bottomed out on the pulley mere millimeters before being free, I was able to pull it out far enough for it to get stuck sideways in the hole. And its such a tight area in there, for a minute I wasnt sure if I was going to be able to dislodge it and put it back together to get home. (I was working in a friends garage) Thankfully I was able to reinstall it, and I will try again in the near future now that I know what to do.

Thank you everyone for the Input!!!!!!!!!!!!