Got the belt on, it started smoking..., now i need a tensioner?!? SIGH. Options

[easternpiro1]

whats up guys... having yet another issue with this coupe i have. To my SURPRISE it over heated earlier today on my way to get the oil changed, when i finally realized what was going on i put some water in it and put 4 fresh quarts of oil in it and was on my way. car was fine until tonight here's what happened.

doing about 65 on highway

hear a slight pop or bump sound

car looses mechanical power

car will not start (it spins as if it wants to start but wont run dont hear any clanking noise indicating thrown rod)

checked to see if oil was under the car

I checked to see if the head gasket is blown (oil not milky nor does it have metal flakes in it)

checked the resorvoir for the radiator

i am ABSOLUTLEY CLUELESS as to what happened.

no tools to check if the timing belt broke


Im beginning to question this car, only had it since may and there have been silly things since the day i got it... LITERALLY the day i got it.


what do you guys think may have happened?

This post has been edited by easternpiro1: Oct 3, 2007 - 10:46 PM

[alltracman78]

Hard to tell from 1000 miles away...

Before you replace the tensioner, make sure nothing is bend or damaged causing it to hit the belt.

What do you mean by "to the side"?

This is why it's good sometimes to pay someone else to do the work if you really don't know what you're doing....

I'm not jumping on you for trying, this is how I got started.
But sometimes [depending on your skill level, ability, tools, and help] it's better to take it somewhere and get the work done.
There's a reason some work is more expensive than others.......

[easternpiro1]

Hard to tell from 1000 miles away...

Before you replace the tensioner, make sure nothing is bend or damaged causing it to hit the belt.

What do you mean by "to the side"?

This is why it's good sometimes to pay someone else to do the work if you really don't know what you're doing....

I'm not jumping on you for trying, this is how I got started.
But sometimes [depending on your skill level, ability, tools, and help] it's better to take it somewhere and get the work done.
There's a reason some work is more expensive than others.......

yeah, we will check that out, but i seriously doubt anything is bent or damaged

according to my friend, when i started it and gave it some gas, he said the belt was slipping to the side as if it were trying to slide off the cam gear.

i was at my friend's house, he has a garage with alot of goodies, he strips cars (eclipses and talons mostly) and sells the parts on ebay, and my friend teaching me is a mechanic at a car dealership, although ive been told he half-asses sometimes...lol

[alltracman78]

according to my friend, when i started it and gave it some gas, he said the belt was slipping to the side as if it were trying to slide off the cam gear.

i was at my friend's house, he has a garage with alot of goodies, he strips cars (eclipses and talons mostly) and sells the parts on ebay, and my friend teaching me is a mechanic at a car dealership, although ive been told he half-asses sometimes...lol

See, that's the thing.

If it's slipping side to side if there is a problem it's probably not the tensioner causing it, but a pulley that is out of alignment. The more it's out of alignment with the other pulleys, the worse the belt will travels side to side.
Belts will do this to some extent at times anyways. You just don't want too much of it.

A bad tensioner is more likely to cause belt slapping or if it's really bad, to jump teeth.

[easternpiro1]

according to my friend, when i started it and gave it some gas, he said the belt was slipping to the side as if it were trying to slide off the cam gear.

i was at my friend's house, he has a garage with alot of goodies, he strips cars (eclipses and talons mostly) and sells the parts on ebay, and my friend teaching me is a mechanic at a car dealership, although ive been told he half-asses sometimes...lol

See, that's the thing.

If it's slipping side to side if there is a problem it's probably not the tensioner causing it, but a pulley that is out of alignment. The more it's out of alignment with the other pulleys, the worse the belt will travels side to side.
Belts will do this to some extent at times anyways. You just don't want too much of it.

A bad tensioner is more likely to cause belt slapping or if it's really bad, to jump teeth.

Would that have anything to do with the fact that the other belts (alternator, and the other one) were not on when we tested it?