Oh, man...

I was getting a squeaky belt, and I believed the A/C belt is the culprit... naturally, I bought a brand new belt and went to install it. I couldn't unscrew the 1/4 inch threaded rod at the bottom of the pulley so I could get the old belt off, so I removed the entire assembly. Problem is, when I went to put it back on, I still wasn't able to twist the rod the other way to tighten the new belt! It's seized pretty badly;I can just barely work it off when I have the thing in my hand. Does anyone know of a way to loosen the threaded rod from the cube of metal on the reverse side? Am I royally done? Or is it possible to just tighten the pulley up high? (doesn't sound safe to me, because the rod is supposed to be supporting it)

I can't even bring my car in to the shop like this. I'm basically stuck for now, so any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks, guys!

 

Release oil, heat, and patience are all you can rely on with rusted threads.

 

BTW Malihide, did you loosen the bolt in the centre of the pulley?

 

You HAVE to loosen the pulley!

https://www.jaguarforums.com/forum/x...lt-how-102387/

 

Yes, I loosened the pulley.

What kind of heat can I apply? I'm assuming a heat gun, because boiling this thing in water is probably going to cause problems down the road...

 

Just to clarify, I can move the adjuster when the assembly is unbolted from the car and I'm holding it in my hands. It's quite difficult but possible. When it gets placed back in the engine bay, I can't turn it to tighten it, whether I'm above or below the car.

 

The pulley fixing bolt and the belt tension should be the only things opposing you when you try to turn it on the car. Since you have the pulley loosened, your threads must be knackered enough that the belt-tension is enough to end the process.

I'd take that thing back off and clean those threads up real good...both the rod and the on the bracket....even run die and tap across 'em, respectively, til you have it working smoothly in-hand.

 

Thanks for your help everyone, I finally got it finished.

Had a spare can of metal protector that I was unaware of. I sprayed that all over, but the wrench I was using was just too short to stay on. So I took a multi-bit for my screwdriver that happened to have a 6mm square opening, attached a hex bit for my wrench that matched the size the multi-bit would use, and then attached that glorious little contraption to the wrench. I had it loose in seconds. I sprayed some more protector for good measure (it lubricates very well) and got the sucker onto the car. Without that thread being seized, it's a 5 minute job to switch the A/C belt... I had spent at least 3 hours trying to figure out what to do.

Anyway, it's all done and I couldn't be happier with the results. Thanks for your help, everyone.