+1 on the helper, I needed one to hold that wrench but couldn't find one.
I had luck using a 90 degree angle air socket wrench which zipped the front nut off faster than the rear could slip or slide out of the wrench. On the rear nut I used the thinnest, shortest open ended wrench I had. It was about half the length of the one in your picture.

If you have a vice and want to sacrifice that wrench, you can make a custom wrench that would fit nicely

 

Yeah, I meant to clarify that the real issue is what Type_LT gets at by specifying the "thinnest, shortest" wrench: If you're not dead perpendicular to that rear bolt, you simply can't get or retain a firm grip on it. I shall move forward with sacrificing said wrench and see how things go. It's been raining all morning here, and will likely continue throughout the day, so I'll be delayed yet again...but I'll communicate back when I've had a chance to give things a go.

Thanks so much for your time and suggestions!

 

That bolt gives a lot of ppl grief. The bolt also has loctite on it. If nothing works, just remove the alternator and slip a long thin wrench (craftsman pro long pattern) from the left behind the vertical coolant hose in your pic. The wrench will then sit firmly on the engine case top (now accessible after the alternator is removed) and it will engage the nut behind the pulley fully and squarely. Now you got all the leverage you need for loosening that bolt.

 

wow didnt know those things needed so much effort to remove and replace

 

Well, guess what?

http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti...Tensioners.htm

I was too hasty in reading the page and, instead of looking at the article itself, I honed in on the comments (16mm vs. 15mm). So, it's a 15mm bolt on the back there. After butchering the 16mm, I indeed had more room, but there was so much play (that I didn't notice before). So, I got the 15mm back out and (after reading the actual article - c'mon, Mick!) what do you know? After having to almost force the thing over the bolt (there was no easy sliding on here), it bit perfectly (as it should).

So......inhale......exhale......now I'm putting the new roller on and guess what? Because the thing is spring loaded, when you go to tighten it (oh, and by the way, there's no way to get that rear bolt off - there's no clearance behind it - you would have to remove the power steering pump - yeah, that's right) the lever it's attached to moves; and to the point that it never stops; to the point that there's simply no way to tighten it the 44lbs it needs.

I'm so damn close...what did any of you do to get it back on to the correct torque value?

Thanks a ton for your time.

 

Well, after all my dramatics, I was able to position everything just so and got the thing torqued to 44 lbs.

Anyone have any idea what the torque values are for the upper and lower ones, respectively? I suppose I wouldn't mind tightening them properly (though the article on Pelican simply states "tighten"). There may be no requirement. Just not sure.

Thanks for listening.

 

I went with "tighten" and got everything back together, but alas...the battery is dead. I have to laugh; it's kind of what I expected. Anyhow, the thing took less than a gallon to fill it to "the brim". We'll see what happens after I finally get it started.

 

I charged the battery all night with an older Schumacher charger (2 amp / "low maint. auto"). I've literally never heard the locks (for example) work so quickly. I've obviously been working with weak battery for quite some time now. Anyhow, the car fired right up, but sounded really rough (chug-chug-chug-chug...). I let it sit until the RPMs dropped to idle (~700), meanwhile watching for any drips/leaks and odd smells/sounds. I got in and took a 5 minute drive around the neighborhood. It sounded and felt rough, with a lagged response to throttle. As I drove, I watched the water temp gauge, which got the 175 and stayed (even after I pulled back up in the driveway and let it run for a couple more minutes). Oil temp rose, as it does, ever so slightly; and oil pressure acted completely normal, starting out at 5 bar, then down to 2.5 by the end of the short drive (has always settled at 1-1.5 after, say, a 15 minute drive). Anyhow, to me all of that looks good...so I've come to the conclusion that either I've got one or more severely fouled spark plugs and/or fried coils or I've got a vacuum leak or O2 sensor issues. The car threw a flashing check engine light (the "pull-over-and-have-the-car-towed" one) for a few seconds and then vanished. Then a solid one...vanished. Then it came back and stayed. I've got a friend with a new Durametric tool that we're going to get all hooked up and see what's going on.

I'll report back on what we find.

 

What was the oil temp at the end of the drive? Where does the coolant level sit now? Were any of these warnings going off pre belt issue?

 

- Oil temp was just rising from dead cold (it was ~65 degrees outside at the time, just FYI).
- I inadvertently over-filled the coolant (1-2 cm beyond "MAX"), and it didn't budge from there.
- Tough to say, honestly, as I hadn't even turned it on since the incident. I will say, though, that the CEL didn't light until, say 30 seconds, after I pulled away.

The CELs were like this:

- Solid for a bit, then gone.
- Flashing for a bit, then gone.
- Solid for a bit, then gone.
- Solid.

 

Durametric time as you noted then report back the findings...

 

Got home from work and checked the connections to the airbox (was thinking about the O2 sensor). They were both solid, but I reseated the one on the right (couldn't get the other one to budge and was anxious to get to the bottom of things). I hop in the car and fire it up and...no issues. No CEL; no rough idle; no rough rev; nothing. I went for a 20 minute drive around the area and, well, sheesh...all is just fine. The attached image is after said drive.

 

Back in business. Nice detective work. Temps look great as well. Exactly where mine runs and I have a 160 Tstat. Keep checking that coolant level over the next few drives.

 

call me an ID 10 T but what is the ! light still on your dash for?

 

In this case I think it's "e-brake engaged" and I think it's similar if you run out of gas.