alternator pulley seized??

[james26695]

According to my SEAT main stealers one of the mammoth list of things wrong with my car is - "noise from ribbed belt area - alternator pulley seized pulley" im not mechanically minded (although learning bit by bit from spending time on these forums!) but does anyone know about these kinda pulleys ..i spoke to a mate who suggested it could be the idler pulley ,- as if it was the alternator pulley - the alternator wouldnt work and the car wouldnt start or drive.....the car turns on first time and still drives ... ive got him coming to have a look tommorow to see what he can see as im pretty useless with this sort of thing.. in the meentime can anyone shed any light on how the pulleys work, prices to change, etc. i can notice a bit more noise then usual coming from the aux belt area, and when stationary if i turn the wheel it groans a bit ... help ...muchos gratuatous!

 

[Muttley]

Some alternators have a freewheel mechanism built into the pulley, which could seize, I suppose.

 

[ianmartin83]

if its the wheel on the alternator it can be replaced alone no need to replace the whole unit.

 

[smudge2011]

Hello bud

I'm a saleman at euro car parts & IanMartin83 is correct they do come separate from the alternator, it's called a freewheeling alternator pulley. But you do need a certain tool to remove it from the alternator. Which most garages generally have. Hope that helps.

James

 

[Seatmann]

And I know where there's a guide if needed for the tdi cars but still pretty much the same as the petrol jobbies. It sounds like your powersteering fluid might be low though, that causes a groaning noise when you turn the steering because that's when the pump's required.

 

[james26695]

what will happen if i drive the car with this seized pulley? can i do damage to the alternator? at worst would my aux belt come off? id probs only drive it to a garage ..

 

[gdjohny]

I need to replace it on mine. How much are they ?

 

[Seatmann]

How's the tensioner look, is it bouncing around like a nutter or sitting smooth and sweet? If it is one of the clutched pulleys and it's siezed the tensioner usually does a mad dance and eventually breaks. Not all of the alternators have a clutched pulley though.

 

[james26695]

How's the tensioner look, is it bouncing around like a nutter or sitting smooth and sweet? If it is one of the clutched pulleys and it's siezed the tensioner usually does a mad dance and eventually breaks. Not all of the alternators have a clutched pulley though.

tensioner is bouncing pretty bad- hope that dont brake as its only a few weeks old along with the belt, gonna take it in to a mates garage tuesday, i have seen one on ebay (new) priced £25 , which sounds right looking at the part - revs in leeds quoted £65!

 

[Seatmann]

Here's a guide if you need it

http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=146580

 

[shorn]

OK, I've just bought a new belt, tensioner and the pulley. Mine needs replacing. Took it to a couple of local garages to see if they can whip the old pulley off, but neither had a spline tool for the job. I've just ordered a Laser 3307 tool that should do the job.
However, I've just had a look into the alternator shaft with a torch and mirror (just to confirm with myself that the spline tool i've order will be the right one, and to be honest, from what I can see, it looks like some of the threads inside are a bit chewed up. Now, i'm not sure how bad, and probably wont know until I get the tool and give it a go, but if its not going to get a solid fit, I'm not sure what I'm going to be able to do, short of getting a new alternator. Any ideas?