With high mileage the serpentine belt idler pulley on '87 and '88 models (as well as many other cars) will fail causing a need for replacement. This need not happen because it can be lubricated and live on. You can determine the need for lubrication easily by backing off the tensioner and dropping the belt off for a minute. Spin the pulley. If it stops quickly it is fine because the grease is dragging it to a stop. However, if it spins freely on and on it is dry and needs greasing.

Remove the bolt holding the pulley on and you will see the "sealed" bearing it rotates on. The "seal" is held loosely around the outside edge. Using a very small screwdriver with dull edges or some other such tool push under the inside edge of the seal and slide the tool around the inside edge lifting slightly. The seal will disengage from the outside edge and lift off. Some seals are a fibrous material and some are plastic coated bronze. The bronze type may deform into a cone like shape as you work around. Try to minimize this and not put any big dents in it. Don't straighten out the shape when you get it out as you will do that at the end putting the seal back in.

The bearing can be lubed with a heavy duty waterproof type of grease. Don't over fill as the excess will squeeze out when the pulley spins making a mess.

Put the seal back on the bearing snapping it in around the outside edge to insure it is seated all the way around. If you have the bronze type seal it will likely have deformed into a cone like shape or partial cone. Push this deformation back down flat the way it was originally.

Reassemble the pulley on the tensioner spring and put the belt back on. If you worked carefully and kept everything clean the pulley has just been given a new lease on life.

Steve

Or just buy the replacement bearing that Rodney dickman sells....

Usually by the time most people need to mess with the pulley bearing the tensioner arm pivot is shot. There is no repair for that other than replacing the whole assembly.

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11-Sept-01, The day the world as we knew it ended.

quote Originally posted by theogre: Usually by the time most people need to mess with the pulley bearing the tensioner arm pivot is shot...

That was the case with mine.
I do, however, have a brand new, in the box, pulley bearing.

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Raydar

From the Department of Redundancy Department.

It's funny to see this thread. I was prepping my 3.4 DOHC and the tensioner pulley was a little notchy after washing the engine. I pulled it off and removed the bearing seals, cleaned the bearing out with some Prep-Sol and compressed air, repacked with synthetic grease and it works like new.
Saved me $30 to boot.

Banzai !!!!!!!!

Ahhh, I just can't see replacing a bearing when a drip of grease will keep it running for years more. Its a quick thing to do too. I have four cars and did them all. 100,000 miles seems about the right time to check it. People should keep in mind that newer cars have the bearing molded into the plastic pulley so the old trick of pressing out the bearing and replacing it with one from a supply house won't work. Gunna have to pay dealer prices if the bearing goes.

In case the bearing on a molded pulley quites....

Unless the pulley is rivited or otherwise not removable from the arm, Gates and a few others make replacement pulleys.