E46 Tensioner and Pulley replacement DIY

[@sessland]

This is the only video I've been able to find that someone switched from a hydraulic tensioner back to the mechanical. It's EXACTLY what I was looking for...minus the incorrect belt routing. The extra bolt!!!!!!! Why doesn't anyone ever mention it??? Thanks a ton man, this video got me back on the road

[@DriveMiami]

Yes the belt was ran wrong. Good eye for detail

[@iibooradley1166]

IK, i been wanting to see if this was possible for about a year now !

[@isaiahwaninger2963]

@@DriveMiami welp ive stripped the torx bolt on the tensioner, I have the hydrolic one and I can’t get my belt back on

[@kukusnest65]

It's the really long one right? I am definitely switching to a mechanical tensioner. That extra bolt was bothering because it really doesn't tighten up well on mine. mechanical one will set my mind at ease

[@_J.P._]

6:31 take a 16" socket and turn the pulley tensioner body clockwise to push the pulley down. You will see two holes that will align once you push if far enough. Once you get there use a pin to fix it in position so you can add the belt later with ease. Once done just watch out that the belt is everywhere correctly and then slowly push the whole body so you can remove the pin and slowly drop it back while constantly checking all spots where the belt could lift off. This is not my tip but how it is done by the manual :) BTW the mechanical has been discontinued and the hydraulic one is the one that superseeds the mechanical. If one is better or worse is hard to say since both do their job well. And you can clearly see cracks in your belt if you have them so don't worry if you can't see any. If they are there they are literally everywhere :) Pro Tip: keep one belt as a spare one inside your trunk for emergency purposes. You may never need it but when the last fresh one will break for no reason at all it is still better to mount the older one to get back home safely instead of having to wait for someone to help you. PS: for test purposes try to run the engine before you put the fan and shroud back. That way you can continue on your work if nescessary without having to remove it again. The engine runs fine without the fan so don't worry. It is there only as a secondary cooling fan in case the electrical will fail (or the heat is massive and the electrical can't cool it down completely). Also important - keep the fan always vertical. The clutch has liquid in it and placing it horizontal may cause it to leak which may later lead to failure or even fan explosion. Once the fan explodes it will destroy pretty much everyting around itself. Including your hood if you are lucky enough. Worst case scenario of course.

[@Bbmangood]

Dude you are awesome literally I’ve been trying to get the poly out and I watched a couple of other videos and they never once say remove this pulley or tensioner pulley that there are boats behind it but they don’t say to remove this pulley to get to them you’re the only person that did that thanks a lot

[@1533ramsay]

Thanks for this video. I'm at an Oreillys and my belt and tensioner broke. I have a mechanic friend who's going to help me out and fix it tonight.... You make it look easy.

[@DriveMiami]

Thank you. ***Make sure to check your belts*** I originally installed it wrong then never recorded me fixing it. Other then that you should be good

[@Triggerman2505]

The belt issue being installed properly was mentioned, but proper way is to go under the top most pulley, rest was all good. Also, if you are switching from a hydraulic to a spring tensioner, you will need a spacer to put behind the top bolt depending on which year you got because some are different. I gave a thumbs up because this was a great video and you took a lot of time to make it. Thank you!!

[@barrygarcia75]

Do you know where to get it at

[@standtall7646]

Bro.., that's a good looking BMW!!

[@artyomkatyomka6678]

Thanks, good video and explonetion! I saw that belt was incorect install at the end of the video but you reinstall it corect later, right?

[@conelrad1447]

hey vsauce, micheal here

[@Mark-qt8fs]

FYI, belt is supposed to go under idler.

[@SoundChemist]

good job, helped me a lot, perfect camera views, and and every was said properly, thank you sir.

[@DriveMiami]

Chemical double check your belt with a diagram from the net. It was placed incorrectly. I fixed it but never recorded that part.

[@SoundChemist]

Drive Miami yes I checked online, everything is perfect, I had to get new ac belt as well

[@e36fanatics]

THANK FUCK SOMEONE HAS DONE THIS WITH GOOD INSTRUCTIONS!!!! LOVE YOU!

[@joelrugg]

Nice diy I’m dumping my hydraulic tensioner too👊🏼

[@steveochry4047]

Fantastic job! Really helpful

[@kendtchileninjah5905]

I have a question..I’m fairly new to this but the tensioner pulley bolt..I think it’s a T50 on my e46..I stripped it a bit but I can still tussle with it. If I take that bolt out will it be an easy change? I’m worried that if I take out the bolt will the pulley close or open and be nearly impossible to put back on

[@Tim28345]

Awesome video very informative but I have a major problem I'm trying to figure out- 2003 BMW 325i the main belt broke, twisted up and sheared off the tensioner assembly completely. All hardware(bolts washers etc) is gone. Not only that, the oil filter housing which the idler and tensioner mount up to is damaged, the aluminum has been cracked off around the bolt holes. I found a used oil filter housing, but now I'm trying to figure out if I need a mechanical or hydraulic tensioner assembly because I don't know which one the car had and I'm trying to figure what hardware I would need for it as all tensioner I find for sale come with no hardware since it's assumed you will re-use your old hardware. What can I do?

[@LIONKING1103]

On the new tensioner, did yiu use same bolt on bottom as the top when mouunting

[@marcosxvyon]

what size is that extra bolt for the new tensioner? part number?

[@carlosley8718]

Perfect video , very informative. Thank you so much, earned a subscriber 👍🏽

[@wesley_media_]

Good video bro I also had to change my belts, I should have also done the Pulleys

[@DriveMiami]

It's a fairly straightforward job. I know you can DIY

[@DriveMiami]

And thank you btw I saw your radiator vid 👍🏼

[@hansolo1068]

Are 2.5 and 3.0 motors different

[@smurklee9235]

That 36 in the bac tho ... nice vid by the way

[@mesniburek1652]

what's the second belt for?

[@jesuscampos6717]

bmw 323i 2000 my speedometer don't work how I fix the can you help me with that please

[@romeocharlie]

Thumbs up on your video. Well explained. One doubt, though: When you mention using the 32mm hex wrench to loosen the fan clutch, how do you hold the clutch before you hammer? Do you use the special BMW tool 11 5 030 or is the water pump/belt tension enough to hold it? And that's a reversed thread, isn't it? Cheers mate!

[@DriveMiami]

I slide the wrench onto the fan clutch bolt and have the wrench standing upright. With that alone it shouldn't move. And yes it's reverse threaded.

[@SydeshowMO]

Nice video! What size are those rims?

[@arjunkhatau609]

The bolt won’t break on My tensioner. No matter how much pressure I put it won’t. What should I do.

[@NoCompM2]

Dude I have finally discovered this video, thank you!! Why has no one done this? Do you know what the part number is for that extra bolt?

[@NoCompM2]

Nevermind I have figured it out. Thank you again for the video. So all in all, only two total of those identical bolts are needed correct?

[@yumijullot1921]

@@NoCompM2 what the part number lol

[@NoCompM2]

@@yumijullot1921 man I can't remember at the top of my head. I remember getting the wrong one because on real oem said the part number but I ended up going to my local bmw dealer and they had a bunch in stock. It's a common bolt.

[@clipxz6270]

How can you identify which pulley is bad ???

[@tiagosoares1023]

Hey man, im currently looking at a bad tensioner or serpentine pulley on my E46 320D, anyway, is this a kind of job someone with no mechanical experience, like me, could do as DIY? Wouldnt want to spend too much on a mechanic

[@devanhixson7399]

It’s possible, the hardest thing is getting the fan clutch off, which is supposed to require a specialty wrench but I just used a rivulet skinny crescent wrench and a pry tool to keep the water pump from spinning

[@christopherbarger6112]

Why not film the process of pulling the fan clutch off? Which direction does it need to go? I’m sure this is really simple but seems like great info to share

[@bfunmaker]

It’s opposite, right is loosely left is tighty.

[@lifestyleent.4757]

Where can I find those rims?

[@DriveMiami]

Those are bbw style 5 reps. ESR is the brand that he chose.

[@ghoztrider407]

Don't mean to talk down on your video but you ran your belt wrong. The belt is supposed to be ran underneath your idler pulley (pulley next to the alternator) so it grips the alternator better to give it a more sufficient charge.

[@DriveMiami]

Thank you we fixed the issue already I'm going to be taking down and Reediting the vid. Good looking out though. I appreciate it

[@ghoztrider407]

No problem! Great video btw.

[@DriveMiami]

Thank you

[@briancastellanos3865]

Could a bad belt tensioner cause my loss of power steering

[@YB-od5bc]

Josh can it ?

[@alexanders860]

So clockwise or counter-clockwise? Not clear.

[@45Raach]

part number for the bolt

[@e36fanatics]

07119906650

[@kflaps1]

doesnt seem possible the lower right bolt hole is correct tensioner doesnt line up properly with the upper bolt hole unless its installed on the lower left and the the belt doesnt seem to fit over the tensioner unless its run imporperly like in the video..

[@jesusulloa640]

Looks like belt orientation is wrong

[@mitropoulosaris]

Wrong way of belt

[@harrisjohnny477]

I watched your video on changing the crankshaft position sensor. That mother f***** is a b****...... I'll never ever tried to do that job again..... I wind up taking the car to a mechanic... and home boy charged me $60 dollars... to install the crankshaft position sensor... it took him 10 minutes.... I was trying to change that thing for 4 hours... and it took the mechanic 10 minutes.... Jack the car up and changed it from the bottom of the car not the top... I was trying to change it from the top and it took him 10 minutes

[@arenwiththee4614]

Vsauce