Crankshaft Pulley Replacement

[andy_merc]

My good lady has driven back today in her 1999 c240 sport and it is making a strange noise, on inspection the belt is now off set on the pulleys and a 4" circular piece of rubber has come off the crankshaft pulley. Are these easy to replace? (I am pretty handy in the garage) and what sort of price are they? Finally is the centre nut left or right hand thread? I know these things are probably torqued very tightly so I would like to make sure I'm actually undoing it! Any help would be greatfully appreciated. Cheers Andy

 

[Hertfordshire Merx]

OK, the crankshaft damper has come adrift from the crankshaft pulley, unfortunately this is common and can result in a lot of damage to the engine front cover. You will need to replace the whole pulley and woodruff key. The crankshaft bolt is normal right handed thread, can be ****** tight!

 

[andy_merc]

Thanks for that I'll build up some muscle and get started! Thanks again

 

[5pares]

You need a special tool to lock the pulley to allow you to undo it.

 

[bigasotonuk]

Hi,
As Hertsmerx says this bolt can be very, very tight, to give you some idea the torque figure for the bottom pulley on a previous car i owned was in excess of 500lb.ft.
The one on my C43 was approx £60 but can be up to £200.
Try Euro car parts or German and Swedish as they can supply them.

 

[television]

The nut is also has locktite on it and as above get it right or by by crankshaft

 

[roofless]

the pulley bolt can be a ba@@ard i just did my front oil seal .......after 10 mins i gave up & got the impact gun out & that took a few blasts to get the sod :Oops: prob not the way to go thou

 

[sweeper]

i done the front seal on the C230k, this was tight, but i got the car in the air put a crow bar in the drive plate and used a very long torque wrench, i would want to try and do it without having the car in the air.

 

[Richard Moakes]

There is another way I was once told, and I have tried it as well, mind you it scared me!

Find a socket to fit the bolt, attach to a breaker bar, then make sure the end of the breaker bar is an inch or two above the ground in the direction of engine rotation.

Remove fuel pump relay and disable HT (no spark) and then crank engine on starter for a quick burst.

It sounds awful, but it does work, and the mechanic involved assured me that was how it was done all the time in a local Vauxhall dealership. Does that say something about the quality of Vauxhall cars, or their mechanics? ;-)

 

[Number_Cruncher]

>>crank engine on starter for a quick burst.

That's how I tend to do it when there's no room to get an impact gun in - but, of course, the method is no help at all when you re-assemble.

 

[television]

>>crank engine on starter for a quick burst.

That's how I tend to do it when there's no room to get an impact gun in - but, of course, the method is no help at all when you re-assemble.

Sham that you cold not isolate the starter from the rest and use a battery reversed, but the pinion would not engage

 

[kth286]

>>crank engine on starter for a quick burst.

That's how I tend to do it when there's no room to get an impact gun in - but, of course, the method is no help at all when you re-assemble.

Car Mechanics mag featured a car where the crank pulley had come off and gone missing !!!

and all the attendant problems that caused ie. belt, ancilliaries stopped working etc.

So ensure that bolt is done up to the correct torque.

 

[Richard Moakes]

Car Mechanics mag featured a car where the crank pulley had come off and gone missing !!!

and all the attendant problems that caused ie. belt, ancilliaries stopped working etc.

So ensure that bolt is done up to the correct torque.

Here is where I have to admit to a mistake made in the past.

I didn't tighten up the pulley bolt enough, and a few months later the car stranded me with a huge misfire. I managed to get it going by stopping every few mile and turning the distributor through massive angles, up to 180 degrees etc... and stuggled home.

I then found the bolt had come loose, thankfully not fallen out, but this had allowed the pulley to slide forward on the woodruff key and then allow the distributor drive gear to slide forward on the crankshaft, thereby causing slipping and partial engagement of the distributor drive.

I can assure you when I tightened it up a 2nd time, it was done tight and with an awful lot of red threadlock.

What is it about this forum, that makes me confess my mechanical sins

 

[television]

What is it about this forum, that makes me confess my mechanical sins

I think Richard that we are all very human on this site, and no one jumps down your throat.

I have done silly things and admitted them here, somehow its is not the same when working on your own car.

 

[Farmer]

Newly joined forum, is it appropriate to ask this here?
Not having correct spanner my local garage was able to remove pulley (vibration absorber) nut from C240. Unfortunately could not then pull off pulley apparently using sophisticated puller. Once the nut is removed should the pulley slide off with reasonable force?

 

[BlackC55]

It should come off very easily.

 

[Alex Crow]

yes, the pulley usually comes off with minimal force, indeed a couple of carefully placed pry bars are generally all that is needed. if your pulley has gone awol with the rubber hanging out it may have chewed up the key/keyways also.

to add to other posts, i like the "then crank for a second" idea. wouldn't want to watch too closely.............

 

[Farmer]

It turned out that I had been misinformed. My local garage had been unable to undo the pulley (vibration damper) nut after all. So I reread all of your comments. I have only now had time to turn my attention to the problem as the varying quotes of £370 and £500 plus part (£60 something) kind of discouraged me from taking the professional route.

But today I had time. Today I reread all your comments and I thank you this forum has been helpful to me in actual advice and an abstract confidence to remind me that I have always done my car repairs ... just because its a mercedes should not deter me!

So today I made a tool to hold the pulley. Yes it took me 6 hours of searching bits of steel and welding but at 5.0pm I had completed it. Perhaps I overdid the welding but with one scafold pole on the new tool to the ground and myself on the second scaffold pole to the spanner, I freed the nut. It is the little things that bring so much pleasure.

I tightened it the same way with the new pulley in place. I just hope my estimated torque is up to the mark.

For your entertainment I will photograph the pulley tool tomorrow and post it here if I can work out how to.

 

[television]

Thank you very much and welcome to the forum,,if you need any help in posting a picture please just ask

You could sell the tool now,,someone will buy it,,maybe an indie