anyone else have worn oem pulley's on the inside edge?

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by soundman98

sorry,thought you were replying to the washing machine post.

I apologize for the cryptic post. Was trying not to muscle in on the pulley conversation. I don't know why the belt picks up that stuff. Maybe all longitudinally mounted engines do that to serpentine belts.

[soundman98]

yeah really doesn't make much sense, there's nothing obviously different about this setup than any other vehicle on the road. maybe the packaging/idler pulley radius' are smaller, which open up the grooves of the belt more for debris than other designs?

[Turdinator]

Originally Posted by soundman98

the last couple months, i've been chasing a squeak in the front of the car. the squeak changes based on rev's, thought it was a belt, changed the belt, still there.

every time i start the car, the squeak will start, and change with revs for about 15 minutes, and then dissipate. nothing catastrophic, but irritating trying to quietly leave my subdivision...

today, finally tried checking pulley's. one is barely noisy, but i think i found the unexpected cause. looks like the 2 stamped steel idler pulley mounting points protrude enough to rub on the bearing retainer collars.





my suspicion is that the plastic rubbing off on the mounting point is the cause of my noise. side-benefit, one of these pulley's is the one that's slightly noisier.

so the question is, does anyone know if the idler pulley design was revised in the 2015+ updates? while i'm inclined to replace them with new, if the design remains the same, the new pulley's are going to suffer a similar fate...

is anyone else aware of a similar wear pattern in other '13-15 cars?

is it worth clearancing this area myself? the mounts are integral to the block, which i've got no intention to replace anytime soon, so i'd rather not mess up the block if i don't have to!

Maybe i am missing something but where is the wear on the pullies? Are you sure its not just time to replace the bearings? looking at the back of the pullies id say all their grease is gone.

[soundman98]

Originally Posted by Turdinator

Maybe i am missing something but where is the wear on the pullies? Are you sure its not just time to replace the bearings? looking at the back of the pullies id say all their grease is gone.

i've got new pulley's sitting on the car ready to go in this weekend. my concern wasn't just replacing the pulley's but how the engine block is wearing into the retaining collar. i didn't want it to happen to the new pulley's.

i found some 14ga 5/8"x1" spacer bushings that that need minor clearancing, but ought to add the clearance i desire to keep the retainer from getting scored up again.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by soundman98

i've got new pulley's sitting on the car ready to go in this weekend. my concern wasn't just replacing the pulley's but how the engine block is wearing into the retaining collar. i didn't want it to happen to the new pulley's.

i found some 14ga 5/8"x1" spacer bushings that that need minor clearancing, but ought to add the clearance i desire to keep the retainer from getting scored up again.

It is interesting how the seal rubbed just a smidge at the base of the mounts. Mine aren't like that. If the inner races on the new ones are wider, noticeably proud of the seal face, then it's a done deal. If you end up needing a spacer, keep it as thin as possible, IMHO. ...I think.


Actually, looking again, I don't know exactly what to make of it, Dammit. Now I want to go look at mine.

[soundman98]

New one's are the same. Inner race is just shallower (3/1000?) than the retainer. A large flat washer(3/4" ID) held flat on the inner race visibly scuffs the lettering on the retainer collar.


They make 18ga spacer bushings that might be more preferable, my home depot only had 1 in stock though. I might try a different store to see if they've got more.

It's just weird to me as every similar bearing like this I've come across commercially has a mounting surface recess machined into the contact surface so as to hit only on the inner/outer bearing surface, but steer well clear by a full 1/8" of the retainer.

[soundman98]

the pulley's definitely lost all their grease. they were rattling like a wrist trinket, but overall were still pretty solid.

definitely didn't help, probably would've cleared when new, but still not enough clearance IMO...

i realized made a mistake when i picked the prettier pulley's.



these definitely didn't clear, wouldn't even spin freely when tightened down.

so the 18ga spacer bushings were a necessity, though honestly about 2x's the clearance i really needed.

problem was the oem washer didn't fit. so i had to do some trimming.


otherwise went in fine, no more squeaking so far, but seems like the other idler pulley under the alternator has some play now...

[2020BRZtS]

FWIW I replaced the idler pulley in the dryer as well and no more squeaks there either.

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by soundman98

the pulley's definitely lost all their grease. they were rattling like a wrist trinket, but overall were still pretty solid.

This is the lesson learned here. If a bearing makes any noise at all, if it isn't silky smooth, it's shot. Period.