Changing drive belt

I want to replace both belts. I must remove the other belt first. Do I must loose the other tensioner bolt as well? If this is the step, what if I loose the bolt but the pulley won't move? I tried it yesterday and the pulley stayed firm in its place, and I was afraid to hit it in order to move it and ended braking it or something similar.

Thank you for your advice, and yesterday I did the loosing of that bolt. The bolt started to show more thread but the pulley stayed firm in its place. I tried to push it down in order to release the belt. Nothing happened, I went afraid that I maybe did something wrong, and tighted back the bolt to its former status.

After that, I wrote you the question about the steps, and it seems that I was doing right, but the pulley won't move.

My question is, what do I do next? After releasing the tensioner bolt, can I hit the pulley down using a rubber hammer? Do I must spray D-40 to the pulley?

Actually, this situation of the still standing of the pulley is the reason why I asked you about the removing of the belts I the first place, because I thought that I maybe need to loose other bolts or similar.

I will try to do it tomorrow morning. So far, I like this place, you have a lot of patience and I'm learning a lot.

Thanks.

Winter is gone. I'm trying it again. I have the right side tension pulley bolt down (released) about one inch (couterclockwise), and the left tension bolt (first graphic above) has been turned counterclockwise and became loose but the more I continue turning it this way the more harder it becomes like adjuasting it again. No motion of the "bracket" is seen, and the belts are both hard to remove. I turned that car On to see if the motion release them, and nothing, they still working as if I never loose any bolt. Please tell me "where to hit" with the rubber hammer, like to say, "hit the Power steering pulley" or "hit the tension pulley" or "hit the air conditioner pulley".

Do I must keep turning the left tension pulley bolt counterclockwise regardless of the feelng that is "adjusting it" until I see the bracket moving of easy to move?

I know I'm close to remove the belts, but still can't get the trick.

In order of not getting confused, "imnotamechanic" and "carloslebaron" are the same person. (I forgot that I was subscribed to your website before and I log in with a different name and e-mail some months later). I will keep "imnotamechanic" because I have its password at hand.

I have loosen the power steering belt by continued turning of the bolt counterclockwise. Yes! This is what I'm talking about. One to go.

. But, my main concern still is the AC/alternator belt. I have turned the bolt counterclockwise as indicated by you and the belt still is tight as hell. You can see in the picture the bolt coming out. Is perhaps the turning of the bolt clockwise instead?

In case I'm in the right path, how to make the belt to get loose now? What to move? Where to hit? Just "cut off" the belt? :-)

(I think the picture will show the bolt going right, actually the bolt is going down, the same as the oil filter behind it)

KHlow2008,

the first move I did in my first try before writing here, was to loose the nut that holds the pulley. It was that hard that I used D-40 and nothing, I noticed that I was starting to destroy the corners of the hexagon of the nut and I did stop. The releasing of this nut is hard by its location, which is very difficult to reach. I thought after this first step which failed, that the loosing of the belt was by doing it in a different way.

I will buy one of those tools which remove nuts by holding their sides and not their coners, and try it again. I will do it on Sunday, because today I had to re-install everything back in place because I need the car tomorrow and Saturday. Besides, tonight and tomorrow will be raining in my area.

Thank you for your advice, I wish you should answered my question last year when I started this thread, but never is late, and I will try it again.

I'm glad for the rain, otherwise I should be loosing the other nut. I will look for the other nut on Sunday. There is a graphic above showing the pulleys, the one I must release has three bolts around, one right above and the other two on its right side. There is also one more to the far left. If you are reading this reply before Sunday, please tell me which one of those bolts, or if the nut is other than the ones shown in the graphic.

Thanks again for your help.

Today I was looking for a metric wrench similar to a break bleeder wrench, because they can reach nuts and bolts that are located in a lower surface level. This is the problem with the nut of the pulley in question, my wrench has a regular angle which is not enough to reach and fit properly to the nut.

I will heat a wrench and bend it in that way to reach the nut and make it fit entirely. Or perhaps I will reduce the beveled interior sides of the nut socket in the bench grinder for the same purpose, because the nut's width is very thin.

I will find the way to loose that nut that gave me hard time in my first try, Sunday I will loose it even if I must have to use the troglodyte method using a flat screww driver and a hammer and hit and push a side of the nut until moves.

Thanks again for your help, I have the hope that on Sunday my car will run with new belts.

Well, I bought extra nut sockets in the pawnshop for a buck, and took the beveled interior. This way the nut socket will fit entirely to the nut. I didn't find a 14mm hex head wrench to release the bolt, so I went with the wrench.

In order to take the nut out I had to make a base to hold the wrench, to which I must have to add extensions because otherwise won't fit straight. The nut came out so easy, that I should made this step in November last year and have no need to consult no one. After I took the nut, the process of changing the belts was a piece of cake, the way it is suppose to be.

Ha ha ha ha. Easy! To take that nut was HELL. I had to become a troglodyte and with a set of screwdrivers and a hammer I practically had to brake the nut. I spent lots of D-40 and took me about an hour of hard work. Finally the nut moved, look at it, believe me, there was no other way because I lack of "special tools" for situations like this.