Polo 9n3 TDI Sportline - Serpentine belt - PLEASE HELP!

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

Hey guys,

So I'm having a problem with my serpentine belt. I have done searches on the forum and I do have some general information, but my problem is very specific and I'm looking for your opinions on what I should do.

I should probably start the story a few months ago when I start hearing a noise coming from the alternator or somewhere nearby. Not all the time I should add. Only when the aircon was on, or the wheels were turned to full lock. It was an intermittent clicking noise. So anyway, I take the car to VW Greenstone and the mechanic has a quick look. Murphy's law then shows his face, and when the mechanic starts the car the noise in gone. He turns the steering wheel to full lock with the aircon on and nothing.

Anyway, he says he knows what the problem is and says it's probably the alternator, one of the pulleys or one of the tensioners. He said I should book the car for repairs when I hear the noise again. So I few months go by without hearing the noise, until recently when it started again.

So on Sunday morning at about 08:30 I start the car to go out shopping. As soon as I start to reverse out my parking bay I hear the noise again but much worse this time. So I stop reversing, and roll forward back into my parking bay. I open the bonnet to see what's going on and I can see the serpentine belt running a little skew on the pulleys. This is what was causing the noise. So I decide to turn off the engine. Once the engine was turned off I go back to look at the situation, and I see the belt has stopped in a misaligned position. Half on the alternator pulley and half off the side. The belt then starts to slowly tear where the outside of the pulley is sitting in one of the belt ridges. It tears almost all the way around the pulley.

Here is a pic of what it currently looks like:



Now my questions are:

1. What are the possible causes for the belt running skew and becoming damaged? Is it a collapsed bearing, tensioner worn/broken, pulley giving in, etc, etc. I know it's only a best guess without looking at the car, but maybe you guys have had a similar problem, and can lead me in the right direction before VW change every single part and I land up paying a fortune.

2. Should I DIY or send it into VW? I have never worked in this area of a car before, so I have limited knowledge and would need a detailed DIY from someone.

3. If I send it to VW should I drive the car there or get it towed? I have heard you can drive without this belt and my house is about 3km from VW Greenstone.

4. If I get it towed how much am I looking at in terms of costs?

Your help would be highly appreciated guys.

[LoW n SloW]

the clutch pulley on the alty has done its time, i think your bill will be around 4k if you go to vw, its easy to change the damn thing uses a special socket and very few people have it, try and see if a mech near you has one, dont leave it for too long as it damages the tensioner after a while

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

the clutch pulley on the alty has done its time, i think your bill will be around 4k if you go to vw, its easy to change the damn thing uses a special socket and very few people have it, try and see if a mech near you has one, dont leave it for too long as it damages the tensioner after a while

So what you are saying is I have to get a new alternator clutch pulley, a new belt and the special socket?

Thanks for your input. Will look into this...

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

28 views and only one reply.

Is there nobody who can help me? I really need to get this sorted...

[MeanTdi]

I have changed mine before....twice.

Fitted a GW cheaper brand that only lasted 1 year, so refitted a better quality one.

You need to remove the top boost pipe to make life much easier. To get the belt off you will need a spanner that fits on the pulley (do not remember the size, could be 10 or 13) and you need to pull the pulley towards you. Try and remember the position of the belt. Someone can help refit the belt one another holds the pulley spring back. I did it alone, but not advisable. Careful as the spring is strong.

Pulley is a simple bolt on the other side (under the alternator) to remove.

[MeanTdi]

More info:

http://vwclub.co.za/forum/viewtopic.php?f=91&t=152239

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

^^^^

Thanks Marco for the help.

I'll only be able to do this myself on the weekend, as I'm working late this whole week and won't get around to it.

- Do you think it will be ok standing like that until the weekend or should I just send it to VW?
- If I send it to VW will it be ok if I cut the belt and drive it there, or should I get it towed?
- If I DIY what parts should I replace besides the belt?

[MeanTdi]

- Do you think it will be ok standing like that until the weekend or should I just send it to VW? - Sorry, standing is fine to leave until the weekend
- If I send it to VW will it be ok if I cut the belt and drive it there, or should I get it towed? - No! Change on the spot or tow.
- If I DIY what parts should I replace besides the belt? - External V belt and pulley

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

- Do you think it will be ok standing like that until the weekend or should I just send it to VW? - No! Change ASAP!
- If I send it to VW will it be ok if I cut the belt and drive it there, or should I get it towed? - No! Change on the spot or tow.
- If I DIY what parts should I replace besides the belt? - External V belt and pulley

Thanks bud. Will do.

[MeanTdi]

Sorry,

- Do you think it will be ok standing like that until the weekend or should I just send it to VW? - Sorry, standing is fine to leave until the weekend
- If I send it to VW will it be ok if I cut the belt and drive it there, or should I get it towed? - No! Change on the spot or tow.
- If I DIY what parts should I replace besides the belt? - External V belt and pulley

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

Sorry,

- Do you think it will be ok standing like that until the weekend or should I just send it to VW? - Sorry, standing is fine to leave until the weekend
- If I send it to VW will it be ok if I cut the belt and drive it there, or should I get it towed? - No! Change on the spot or tow.
- If I DIY what parts should I replace besides the belt? - External V belt and pulley

That is good news. Then I can DIY on weekend and save myself a whole lot of money.

Thanks again for your help Marco!

[LoW n SloW]

hey bud by looking at the pic above seems to me that your tensioner is now bent meaning the belt tensioner is no longer directly aligned with the other pulleys as you can see your belt has jumped 1 groove and is sommer running towards the right (proof of misalignment) so the tensioner is also tired..

and what could cause that is when the clutch pulley from the alternator (which causes the noise aswell when the aircon is on) is also failing
its easy to change the belt and carry on (all you need is a 16 spanner for undoing tension and another spanner to help lever the working spanner), but trust me 2 days later of driving you will be back at square 1

my suggestion is get
1. the tensioner, GW one is ok
2. the belt also GW
3. the alty pulley i suggest get the original part (and uses a special tool to change)

lekke

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

hey bud by looking at the pic above seems to me that your tensioner is now bent meaning the belt tensioner is no longer directly aligned with the other pulleys as you can see your belt has jumped 1 groove and is sommer running towards the right (proof of misalignment) so the tensioner is also tired..

and what could cause that is when the clutch pulley from the alternator (which causes the noise aswell when the aircon is on) is also failing
its easy to change the belt and carry on (all you need is a 16 spanner for undoing tension and another spanner to help lever the working spanner), but trust me 2 days later of driving you will be back at square 1

my suggestion is get
1. the tensioner, GW one is ok
2. the belt also GW
3. the alty pulley i suggest get the original part (and uses a special tool to change)

lekke

Thanks for your help and input bud...

I managed to get all the above needed parts from GW, and with the little time I had this weekend I managed to at least strip most of the parts out.

The tensioner I got from GW looks a little different to the current one, and I'm worried it's wrong and won't work. I haven't tried it yet as I ran out of time, but what do you think? See below pics:

First pic is the existing tensioner without the wheel (while still installed) and the second pic is of the existing tensioner wheel vs the new tensioner I got from GW.





I will be getting the special tool for the alternator pulley today, and will be carrying out the rest of the work tomorrow afternoon as I will be taking a half day's leave.

So I have 2 questions for tomorrow's work.

1. Will the new tensioner work or should I take it back to GW?
2. I didn't have a good look but how do I remove the current tensioner? I only had a quick look and couldn't quite figure it out.

[MeanTdi]

1. Will the new tensioner work or should I take it back to GW? - Not sure, I used a VW one. Looks similar to mine with the plastic wheel.

2. I didn't have a good look but how do I remove the current tensioner? I only had a quick look and couldn't quite figure it out. - The bolt is on the oil dipstick side of the engine. 1 bolt only.

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

1. Will the new tensioner work or should I take it back to GW? - Not sure, I used a VW one. Looks similar to mine with the plastic wheel. Well on the box of the new one it does say it is a genuine WAG part, so maybe my current one isn't an OEM part.

2. I didn't have a good look but how do I remove the current tensioner? I only had a quick look and couldn't quite figure it out. - The bolt is on the oil dipstick side of the engine. 1 bolt only. Thanks I didn't check there.

[LoW n SloW]

it will work

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

Hey guys,

So I finally managed to get the alternator pulley off once I got hold of the special tool. Seems like the clutch bearing was the problem. So I replaced it with the new pulley.

Just a quick question on the tensioner. I have installed it, and now I just wanted to check with you guys. Once it is in position I have to pull the pin to release the spring, correct? The pin I am speaking of is in the picture above.

And thanks for the help guys! You guys have been awesome!

[LoW n SloW]

...told ya, and yes release it slowly while holding it with the spanner to prevent unnecessary damage

[MeanTdi]

.. Once it is in position I have to pull the pin to release the spring, correct? The pin I am speaking of is in the picture above.

Yes, careful, it is spring loaded!

...told ya, and yes release it slowly while holding it with the spanner to prevent unnecessary damage

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

Cool...

Thanks guys.

[LoW n SloW]

glad you came right, that noise you get from that pulley sounds scary and where did you get the socket that fits the pulley?

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

glad you came right, that noise you get from that pulley sounds scary and where did you get the socket that fits the pulley?

Yeah, the noise was worrying when I first heard it.

Well all the places I tried to phone about the tool, wouldn't borrow it to me. They all said that they would change the pulley for me, but they wanted to charge me labour. So I told them to get lost. I'm actually in construction, and our company's plant/vehicle repair/service workshop did it for me when they had some free time.

Edit to add: Now that my vehicle is running again, I see the clock on the OBD has reset because I disconnected the battery when removing/installing the alternator. Any idea how to set the clock to the correct time? I'll do a search now, just thought I'd try my luck.

[dhirennaidoo]

The button on the cluster that you push to reset the trip meter : rotate it to the left (you'll feel a click) for hours and right for minutes. Also, RTFM

[VW 'John Deere' TDI]

The button on the cluster that you push to reset the trip meter : rotate it to the left (you'll feel a click) for hours and right for minutes. Also, RTFM

Thanks.

[LoW n SloW]

yoh good info that