bannerd

Hey all, I'm on my second pulley belt.. was driving down the road and I heard a loud ticking noise. Popped the hood and my pulley belt was cut into pieces. Stop at advanced auto and replaced it.. ended up going five miles and it happen again. It seems like the idle tension pulley is to small.. the rubber is flush to the edge. Seems like it should have a lip or something on the pulley. Would a bad idler cause a pulley belt to shred like that?

Jim5870

Check the tensioner, most likely needs replacing.
the spring pivot can wear out and when it does the pulley ends up leaning one way and won't be in alighnment.

thrashingcows

The pulley on the tensioner does not have any lip or groove, at least on my 89 motor it doesn't. As to why you shredding belts I'm not too sure, but I think something is out of alignment, or as Jim5870 stated it might be a belt tension issue.

furious70

My truck has always eaten the back rib off a belt, but been fine after it munches that first part. My uncle's old 93 would slowly walk the belt back over time and gradually consume the whole thing till there was just a shoe string width left.

JBradley500

my idler was a little worn and ate the 1st rib of 2 belts... then it ruined the new belt all together after a couple thousand miles. i put a new gates tensioner on there and a MICRO-V belt and had had zero issues for the last year.

bannerd

What was the part number on the gates? 38157?

wannadiesel

Classic sign of a worn tensioner.

JBradley500

Im sorry... it was Dayco and i got it from advanced auto. Gates made the belt for napa that i bought. whoops