hepu pump w/ short belt mod??

[collett]

hello all. discovered that my water pump is making some squeaks and rattles, so i am replacing it this weekend with the hepu (1/2$$) --> had good luck with these pumps i hope?!?

my concern is this --> the hepu pump has an "updated" (what the supplier told me) smooth pulley, where the old pump has a slightly grooved pulley -- right part #, but doesn't seem right. could this be hazardous when deleting the center idler pulley with the short belt -- or even with the long belt for that matter??

maybe i am missing somthing ??? i am a pretty good DIY mech, but i need some insight here.

i am also planning replacing the upper idler pulley and tensioner pulley (both are noisy - i think they are all original @ 77k).
any suggestions and input appreciated!!

[earthworm]

Maybe, just maybe this will not make that much difference - the automotive engineers are men and very subject to error...

In my opinion, in this Saab set up, they designed the serpentine belt system with too much pressure (tightness) - causing the pre-mature death of three bearings..
But with less pressure, the idlers and grooves become more important...
With a short belt, it would be interesting to see if there is less pressure..

BTW, is it possible to remove and then reuse the WP pulley ??

[collett]

the pulley is welded on the new pump. i think i am goin to just take my chances -- it is supposedly an "improved design" anyway right? maybe it will be better.

another pulley question --> while i have the belt off and replacing the pulleys and H20 pump, is there any way to service/grease the pwr steering, and alt. pulleys??

thanks in advance

[earthworm]

Originally Posted by collett

the pulley is welded on the new pump. i think i am goin to just take my chances -- it is supposedly an "improved design" anyway right? maybe it will be better.

another pulley question --> while i have the belt off and replacing the pulleys and H20 pump, is there any way to service/grease the pwr steering, and alt. pulleys??

thanks in advance

The glaze can be emery-papered off.
Alternator bearings can be renewed, but these last for a long time - I have never had one wear out or become noisy, but then I run my belts no tighter than necessary.
But with the '96 I'll have to accept whatever the belt tensioner gives me.

[JMarkert]

I've never taken my belt off, so I'm curious about what you mean by "grooved".

Do you mean that there's no edge to the pulley to hold the belt in place, or are there grooves cut into the flat place where the belt sits. Do these mesh with the grooves in the belt? I know they sell belts with different groove styles too, so I wonder if they need to match.

[Asia Skyly]

You should have no problems. The Water Pump is surrounded by a couple of other pullies in the belt cycle that are gooved. With those in place and a good working tensioner, there should be no reason for the belt to come lose. Just make sure you get the correct belt. One that fits tight and snug. I went with Gatorback from Goodyeard and so far, I love the results (Although my Water Pump is stock).