Air conditioner drive belt...

[Blue91Ex]

Hello, my 91 XLT has its issues, one of which is the air conditioning. The previous owner had some issues with it, there was something that is fairly normal to break he mentioned, but there was something on teh motor that confused me. The little wheel driven by the main engine belt, the one farthest up and to the right on the front of the engine, makes a slight rattling noise. From what i could tell when atchign it when the motor was running, there is a piece on it that spins normally with the belt, and the round metal piece on the front of the wheel (im asuming it holds the belt on) coudl spin freely, it stayed still unless you turn it with your hand.

is this piece supposed to spin with the surface piece touching the belt, or is is supposed to be stationary? there was one small screw/bolt in the center of the front piece, i thought mayeb this needed to be tightened?

Any info would be great.

 

[Anime]

If it's a metal pulley touching the drive belt, that's the tensioner. That keeps the belt tight.

If it's rattling, then the bearing in the middle is probably worn out, and needs to be replaced. The pulley itself can be removed and a new bearing installed, or you can buy a new pulley with a new bearing already installed, or you can just buy a whole new tensioner assembly.

 

[Blue91Ex]

It doesnt look quite liek that, i dotn have pictures of it right now, but if it is a tensioner, the actual pulley wheel spins normally but the rattling is from the faceplate that i assume keeps the pully from slipping off, it can be rolled around on the front of teh wheel while the engine is running and when you touch it i think (last time i looked was when the previous owner let me check it out and test drive it) it stopped the noise, maybe i should tighten the bolt in the middle or get a whole new pulley wheel or whatever it is? My uncle in a mechanic so i was going to have him check out teh entire truck sunday, also when i plan to take pictures of any of the problems i can find and start my registry. (it isnt currently at my house, waiting patiently though, i could go get it any time, he lives right down the road but i need a ride to go get it haha.)

 

[Blue91Ex]

just kind of adding to this, anyone know if an '87 F150 front bumper would fit on an ex with some modification(stuff i coudl do with limited tools) i have never been too fancy of the thin looking front bumpers on the 1st gen ex's, they see too understated i guess, and the body kits i have seen make it look too boxy and not very attractive usually. this isnt a rock crawler so having a bit less frontal clearance doesnt matter to me, other than big potholes in the road maybe..

 

[Anime]

If the 'pulley' you're talking about is on the upper right of the engine as you're standing in front of it, that's the A/C compressor. If it's rattling then it might be low on oil/lubricant, or it could just be the compressor drive is old and worn and needs to be replaced. The belt drive part can be replaced seperately if need be.

An F-150 is a much larger full size truck. The bumper would be a lot wider than the Explorer. You could cut one and re-weld it to make it fit, and just weld in the right Explorer mounts in back, but when you're done it'll just look a whole lot like the Explorer bumper, the front end of the Explorer is based on the style of the F-150, Bronco, etc.

There are custom bumpers available for the Explorer that make it look a little less boxy, or you could add on a brush guard or other accessories.

 

[Blue91Ex]

well i liek the look of the explorer, but the f150 bumper is a little taller/beefier and woudl hang down a bit more, so it would still look like an explorer bumper, just a bit larger and i figured i would have to cut it to fit.

 

[Blue91Ex]

and yes i found that it is the air conditioner, which was disconnected, so right now the wheel is just acting as a tensioner, but i plan to fix teh AC, but i was curious because the belt spins it, just not the thin faceplate on it, which spins freely unlike the inner part that the belt touches.

 

[Anime]

When the A/C is working and engaged, the clutch on the compressor "catches", and that place spins with it. It just spins freely when not engaged.

 

[Blue91Ex]

okay that is somewhat relieving haha, i was worried it was abou tto fall off or something, so if it rattles a bit its most likely the bearing?

 

[Anime]

The A/C system has lube inside that goes through the system when it's used, that lubricates the compressor, including the bearings, so the rattling could just be that the compressor bearings aren't getting enough lubricant because the system is empty (the o-rings and seals get old and eventually the charge leaks out), or it could just be the A/C clutch is rattling because it's on a little loose, or it might even just be the front plate is just vibrating loose with age.

If you want, you can buy a shorter belt for the 4.0L engine for an Explorer without A/C, and put that on instead of the longer A/C belt, which will make it so the belt just doesn't go around the A/C compressor. It'll cost ya a few bucks, but it might be worth it, either to save wear and tear on the compressor if you plan to use it later with a fixed A/C system, or just to prevent the possibility of anything bad happening, like the A/C clutch flying off.

 

[Jason94sport]

If it's a 91, good bet it's r12 & not converted, so a AC compressor replacement will be needed anyway. Run it till it dies & replace when you need.

like the A/C clutch flying off.

I had that happen on a Town car. Wasn't a big deal, the compressor pulley still functioned fine.

 

[Blue91Ex]

well i probably wont use the AC until i have an ex ess of spare cahs so ill just have top use the windows and sun roof haha.