My belt tensioner pulley is making a nasty "bearings going out" noise and leaving bits of bearings on the block. Does anyone know how to remove the tensioner arm??? Thank you in advance

 

You'll need to put front end of car up on jackstands and remove passenger side wheel. In the wheel well there's a removable access cover (see picture). Remove that and you'll be able to view the belt routing (make a diagram now!). You'll see a 3/8" square recess on the tensioner; that's where you'll insert end of your breaker bar, then rotate tensioner to release tension on the serpentine belt for removal. When the belt's off you can remove the tensioner and replace it. Note that there are three other idler pulleys there plus the tensioner pulley, so inspect all for condition. Search YouTube for "x-type serpentine belt" and you'll see several videos to review the procedure. Reminder: Make a diagram of belt routing. There are specialized (thin) tools made for this job; your local parts store may have one for loan.

 

+1 on swingwing's comments. Keep in mind it is not necessary to replace the entire tensioner assembly you can purchase the pulley with a new bearing. If you are seeing bits of the bearing on the engine is it the water pump tensioner at the back of the engine. If so you relieve the tension in the same manner. In most cases the pulley bolt on the tensioner is a left hand thread fastener. Check for you tube videos for the x-type water pump repair videos.

 

Carz, I first should've asked which belt tensioner, because there's two as avern mentions. There's the main one on the front of the engine (passenger side), which I assumed you were talking about. The second tensioner is on the back (driver side) of the engine and is for the water pump belt drive. For that one you just remove the air filter box and there's easy access. The main serpentine belt is more difficult. Can you confirm which one you're having the problem with?

 

It's the passenger side. The problem I was anticipating was an issue like "preloading the spring"? in the arm of the tensioner since the whole arm has to be removed as the bolt for the actual pulley is on the back side. or does it just bolt right back in?
Thanks for all the info everyone!

 

The arm assembly just unbolts and bolts back in. You need to relieve the tension to remove the belt. Then when the unit is bolted back in it is under tension and you again move it to relieve the tension and place the belt back on.

 

Well, after a battle getting the pulley replaced and new belt installed, I still have the same grinding noise. This is an American car(drivers side LEFT) Sitting in the car, the front RIGHT side, same side the serpentine belt is on, is where the noise is. The bits were all around the tensioner, which is why I replaced it. Upon looking at the old pulley, it is a sealed bearing, and other than having a bit of noise being its 14 years old, it wasn't the problem. The "bits" I am seeing are on the passenger side, between the tensioner and alternator.

 

Remove the belts and run the engine. That will tell you if the problem is an accessory or is inside the engine. You can run a cold engine for a few minutes this way without any worry.

Pete.

 

Carz, did you check the three idler pulleys after you got the serp belt off? I'm thinking the tensioner pulley or one of these other three is your problem. Other components on that belt are PS pump and AC compressor. Just for grins check PS fluid level.

 

I have been tackling other fun things like the torsion bar link replacement, since one of the plastic links had broken. Easy fix. I am guessing it's the top right pulley above the alternator since I'm seeing most of the "metal bits" near the alternator(and ON the alt. housing) It's definitely a bearings going out noise.
Thanks to all for your feedback!!

 

Vas ist "torsion bar link?" Did you mean sway bar link? As far as your pulley issue goes, I'm thinking you mean the grooved pulley above and left of the alternator. Easiest (most expensive) fix is to buy a new AJ89037 idler pulley. What I'd do is replace the bearing for about $10 or so; the bearing in my pulley (I've got my belt and pulleys off for another issue) is an NSK 817-1020G48. A decent parts store will have it, and replacement looks very simple if you look at some YouTube videos. All you need is a socket that matches up with the outer race of the bearing; pound out the old one and hammer home the new one.

 

Here's a pic of the access plate removed and the tool you need to release tension on the serpentine belt. It's a 3/8" square peg on a slim bar, and they're widely available at parts stores. There's not enough clearance to get a regular ratchet or breaker bar onto the belt tensioner. If you're putting the car on stands like most of us, you may find you'll need to cut some of the length off the bar - I took off about 5".