Well I finally figured out what my mystery noise was, now I just need to fugure out what to do about it.

Since I got my car, it made a erratic rattling noise from the from the front of the engine. At first I thought it was the waterpump, and then I thought it was the timing chain.

Well I figured out what it is. Just behind the large pulley at the bottom, there is a round hunk of metal just floating on the shaft, banging around. It's riding on the shaft, between the two groove pulley and the motor.

Anyone know what this hunk of round metal is? And do I need it?


Thanks!

 

Can you get a decent pic of it? I'm guessing the pulley came apart or something along those lines, but a pic is worth...

 

It is the outer ring of your harmonic balancer, and yes you need it. Unfortunately, you need it to be properly attached to the harmonic balancer. Since it no longer is, you need your balancer replaced or rebuilt. There are several vendors who can do this. The balancer is two parts, the outer ring and the inner hub, with a piece of rubber compressed between the two. The rubber eventually deteriorates, resulting in the problem you have.

 

So I need a new harmonic balancer?

Can you point me toward a place that sells them?


Thanks!

 

I found one here...

http://www.damperdudes.net//product_...products_id=54

So this whole thing is all one piece with the pulleys and all?

 

Yes. it's supposed to be 1 piece anyway .
You will most likely need a puller to get the center section of it off so you can install your new one.

 

http://www.damperdoctor.com/Merchant...egory_Code=OLD
The pic here looks like one piece as well.

 

I've been driving it that way since I got it, and the PO probably had been for who knows how long.

The are no vibrations, actually the card rides pretty smooth. It just makes an annoying clanking noise at idle.

Should I park it until I can replace the balancer?

 

The lower pully and harmonic balancer on you engine are one piece. Remove the center bolt and use a puller to remove the lower pully and balancer. hook the fingers of the puller on the backside on the pully not the balancer to remove.

 

I would park the car until the problem is fixed. The harmonic balancer is there for a reason. Without the harmonic balancer working correctly, you risk excessive wear or failure of the crankshaft and bearings and other engine components. The harmonic balancer absorbs harmonics within the engine which can otherwise destroy engine components. Just because you may not be able to feel these harmful vibrations it doesn't mean they are not there.