Newbie In Need Of Help With A Auxillary Drive Belt Tensioner Issue :-)

[serpentc11]

hi all,

by way of introduction im craig a newbie to the forums im from southern scotland I have a basic grasp of vehicle mechanics and to date have managed to do most things to vehicles ive owned untill now ive been the proud owner of my 2001 "51"plate raV4 for about 6 months its the 2.0ltr VVTI varient the Engine is a 1AZFE model (sorry to those who already figured that out)

I recently suffered a auxillary drive belt failiure a quick look under the bonnet revealed a snapped belt so i got the vehicle home purchsed a new belt then DISASTER struck after removing the splash guards etc to access the lower pullys i turned my attention to the belt tensioner the 19mm hex head on the automatic belt tensioner pully assembly this is cast onto the assembly by the looks of it and is used to pivot the tensioner is rounded so i cannot get a socket onto it to move the pully in order to gain slack to fit the new belt. has anyone got any ideas????

as a last resort i think i may need to change the belt tensioner but i am yet to find a UK parts seller who is not a main dealer asking for £300+ inc fitting does anyone have any advice on changing the tensioner i understand its not as simple as just unbolting it from the engine

any help, comments , observations etc most gratefully received

craig

[anchorman]

Just digging some info out. Be back soon................

[anchorman]

OK, the tensioner is only held on with 2 bolts so if it needs to be done buy the part and fit it yourself. There is one bolt to the left of the adjuster and one on the end of that little shock absorber (hydraulic tensioner). Check the price at Toyota but you can get them from motor factors too.

However, have you tried with a single hex socket? Some socket sets have just 6 sides and that might grip what is left of the adjuster nut. Look at these 2 pdf's

1AZ tensioner.pdf

1AZFSE serp belt.pdf

BTW stop making county names up. Roxy music shire is not a county.

[serpentc11]

Anchor man

thanks for the info I am heading out the door to try again and will report back cheers craig

[serpentc11]

Quick Update (1)

following the quick responce and really usefull info provided above by anchorman i had another bash at getting my serpentine belt changed

I have now tried using a decent 6 point socket sadly the hex head is to far gone and this slipped as well , I even tried the next socket size down in desperation with no luck

Having looked at the actual tensioner bolts and slackened them off i am unable to remove one of them as it jams hard up against the body, would i be correct in thinking i may need to either "drop" or prehaps "raise" the engine to get the bolt to clear the body to remove unit (and i guess replace once i can source a local factor) , THe vehicle is going to be recovered from its present location in the carpark to a friends workshop.shortly were further works can take place without distraction

I wil try and upload some images later today of this new problem highlighted and god willing of how i sorted it

thanks again to anchorman for his contribution

craig

[anchorman]

Been out most of the day Craig. Its hard to know without actually seeing it but working down the front of the engine is never easy at the best of times. There have been many times where I have had to drop or raise an engine just to get a bolt out. If you are sure nothing else will move then you may well have to. If you took the top of the damper off would that do it?

Regards

Don

[serpentc11]

Happy to report back thats my RAV back on the road following a large part of today spent under the bonnet,

For those interested or facing a similar problem i resorted to lowering the engine to give me the clearance to remove the tensior assembly bolts (!Removed! tight) removed tensioner from vehicle worked it loose in the bench vice the spring loaded hydraulic tensioner bit was sticking replaced to vehicle fitted new belt this was not something id been keen to do at the roadside/carpark i undertook this is a nice well lit fully equipped independant workshop

[Big Kev]

Respeck and welcomations, Craig......typical Bordersman.....bloody stubborn !!!! When ya need alloys done, fellow member Hoovie in Coldstream.

Big Kev