Guest saundra Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 My 89 Reatta has a loud clanking noise behind the drive belt pulley where the crank shaft comes out through the front end. There is dry rotted rubber around the center of the pulley. There also seems to be a metal nub making a noise, or a missing metal nub? I guess by now you all can tell I am clueless about what is wrong....and so is my mechanic. Anyone able to help? Please? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Please be more specific about what you are calling a metal nub. It sounds like normal failure of the harmonic balancer but the metal nub part needs clarification. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 BTW, Welcome to the forum! You will find lots of useful info here and people willing to help with your problems... or to just discuss Reattas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest saundra Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Thanks for responding. The clanking is very loud and everyone turns their head when I'm driving by! All I can say is the mechanic had me order a Belt Tensioner Assembly, and after he put it in, he realized that was not the problem! When I arrived at the garage, he was putting his hands deep under the hood on the passenger side and kept saying it was a problem with the harmonic balancer.......he kept trying to unscrew a bolt but nothing was happening. Then he got under the car and I started the engine. All he could say is that he could see where the problem was coming from but he didn't understand why the noise was coming from that area. He saw the dry rot. He also said something about a nub slipping into the wrong slot? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Remove the belt and start the engine. The sound should change if the balancer is at fault. Turn the engine off and you should be able to feel the outside (pulley) of the balance move around some if you pull on it from side to side. Balancers are available in The Reatta Store. Look in the Engine & Trans category. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 The bolt can be very hard to remove. Instructions for removing it are here:Harmonic Balancer Bolt RemovalCaution should be used when removing the bolt with the engine as shown on my website. It can be dangerous if not done properly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest saundra Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 I will tell him to do that in the morning and we'll take it from there... Thank you for your help. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waltmail Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Remove the belt and start the engine. The sound should change if the balancer is at fault. Turn the engine off and you should be able to feel the outside (pulley) of the balance move around some if you pull on it from side to side. Balancers are available in The Reatta Store. Look in the Engine & Trans category.Ronnie, if the harmonic balancer were bad I would think the noise would not change or would not go away with the serpentine belt removed. If it does go away without the belt, it is one of the driven components, IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Walt, I don't see in my post where I said the balancer noise would go away by removing the belt. I believe I said it should change. I hope I'm not posting misleading information.When my balancer went bad it did have a different sound with the belt off. It changed from a knocking sound to more of a rattle. Maybe I'm the only one to experience that. Have you tried removing the belt when you suspect a balancer being bad? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waltmail Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Walt, I don't see in my post where I said the balancer noise would go away by removing the belt. I believe I said it should change. I hope I'm not posting misleading information.When my balancer went bad it did have a different sound with the belt off. It changed from a knocking sound to more of a rattle. Maybe I'm the only one to experience that. Have you tried removing the belt when you suspect a balancer being bad?I see where you went with the original post. I misinterpreted the "noise change" part. I imagine there would be a change without the force from the belt tension bracket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnie Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 It's always good to have another pair of eyes scanning what I post. As much as I post it's not unusual for me to misunderstand a question or give an incorrect or incomplete answer. I certainly don't want to mislead anyone if I can help it. Thanks for keeping a watch over my shoulder. I appreciate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Corvanti Posted July 30, 2012 Share Posted July 30, 2012 Please be more specific about what you are calling a metal nub. It sounds like normal failure of the harmonic balancer but the metal nub part needs clarification.could the "metal nub" be the crank position sensor?from the OP, it sounds like the crank balancer ("dry rotted rubber", etc.) needs replacing and the CPS.i'm really just asking, since it happened with mine. in the best of worlds, her "mechanic" may not be familiar with this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanR Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 What's with the harmonic balancer failures lately? I just replaced mine last month (twice). Cosmetically, the balancer looked perfectly fine but the noisy rubbing sound was awful to the ears. I had to replace it TWICE because either the crank position sensor (CPS) was rubbed down by the ears from the old balancer, or it just simultaneously failed too! So go ahead and replace that cheap $20 sensor too!!!http://forums.aaca.org/f116/88-died-20-min-after-harmonic-330587.html#post1048453 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 The CPS must be aligned to the rings. If the rings get bent they need to be straightened first. Any contact with the magnets is bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeanR Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 The CPS must be aligned to the rings. If the rings get bent they need to be straightened first. Any contact with the magnets is bad.That's the mystery....nothing was rubbing between the CPS and rings. Might as well replace a 23+ part anyway considering the trouble it would take to do it twice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Corvanti Posted August 1, 2012 Share Posted August 1, 2012 i can't think of a good reason NOT to replace the CPS - "while you're there"... i also replaced the oil pressure gauge sensor since it was needed - 0 to 255 on the CRT gauge while the engine was running...don't forget to clean the electrical contacts with "CRC QD Electronic Cleaner" (or equivalent) on the old plug going in to the new one.the "manual" on page# 6E3-C4-2 states the clearance should be .025 inch on the CPS. i used a old "points" adjuster gauge and apparently got close since i haven't had any problem since... hope this helps... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
harry yarnell Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 For setting the proper CPS/shutter gap, I use a folded piece of thick paper (matchbook)in one of the CPS's grooves, then install the balancer, moving the CPS to have the shutter just slip into the folded paper and button it up.Oh, don't forget to remove the paper shim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
waltmail Posted August 2, 2012 Share Posted August 2, 2012 So, I wonder what happened to the original poster? Curious as to what the problem was/is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
padgett Posted August 3, 2012 Share Posted August 3, 2012 Matchbook covers are good for setting points also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Corvanti Posted August 3, 2012 Share Posted August 3, 2012 jeez, i thought maybe "they" didn't make these anymore? i've only had mine for 35+ years! OEM/26 blades master feeler gauge (25025) | Feeler Gauge | AutoZone.comwouldn't think about checking spark plug gap without something similar to this:OEM/.040 to .080 in. hi-energy ignition plug gap gauge includes electrode adjuster (25026) | Spark Plug Gap Gauge | AutoZone.comand i'm the one for all the "cheapest/easiest" way to fix things. how many matchbook covers to properly gap a reatta spark plug? (i'm mainly joking, it's the weekend!!!) :cool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest moldymac Posted August 4, 2012 Share Posted August 4, 2012 Does the car sound like my car in this video? That's the same car in the video that Ronnie linked to. The rubber part let go, classic on these 3.8s Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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