Automotive Forums

Hi, I have a 1997 Honda Passport with an Isuzu engine(3.2 liter). I have noticed that the crankshaft pulley is wobbling, not balanced... like a worn bearing. However, I don't even know if there is a bearing in that pulley and if so, is that the likely cause. Or, is there something else that this may be. I have had this Passport for about a year and it has 169k on it, but runs pretty good. I want to fix this myself, but I would like to hear some advice on what I might have on my hands and also where is good to get parts because I live in a fairly small town and I wasn't able to find a crankshaft pulley online or the two local auto parts stores' online sites. Thanks.

M Barry  

Hello, Mr. Barry. I have a '95 Passport w/ a 3.2 L engine and ~129,000 miles. Two months ago, the engine began making a rather loud chirping, then sqealing noise with the A/C on - at first when idling, but now, even at somewhat higher RPM's. After much searching and ruling out possible cuprits (belts and belt-driven components), I happened to notice that BOTH belts which are driven by the rear two belt tracks on the crankshaft pulley were slowing down as the sqealing noise got louder, while the front belt stayed at a constant speed! Also, there was some wobbling. I couldn't believe it at first, but upon closer exam, I realized the 'pulley' is actually a two-piece crank pulley/harmonic balancer. The rear section, having the back two belt tracks, is pressed onto the 'mandrel' part of the front pulley, and is friction-driven through the rubber sleeve between it and the front pulley's mandrel. This is the same, basic construction that ordinary harmonic balancers have, except in this case, the driven (rear) member has to supply belt drive for the alternator, water pump/radiator fan and the A/C compressor. When new, it's able to handle the load, but, with aging and thermal cyclng, the rubber sleeve eventually begins to "take a set" and harden. That's when it starts slipping - with enough torque load - and slipping makes it get even hotter, which exacerbates the problem. In my opinion, this is poor design because engineers know that rubber takes a set and hardens with age.

A local (Houston) Honda dealer quoted ~$575.00 to replace the pulley/balancer. That's a lot of money for me - plus I don't like the idea of other people hacking around on my car! That's where I am right now, and I've got several ideas I'd like to try before major "surgery."

By doing a Google search, I found the part online at several outlets, e.g., www.thepartsbin.com. They happen to have a good picture of it. Cost is about $240.00.

If you (or any other reader) have some thoughts about an alternative 'fix' for this, your input would be most welcome.

Best Regards,
Henry S.  

Thanks Henry... Well, I found a part at rockauto.com that looks like what they had at the site you recommended, but it's next day delivery for $165. I've gotten the fan shroud, cooling fan, and belts off. The harmonic balancer/crankshaft pulley main bolt was very hard for me to get out. I used some really big channel locks to keep the pulley from turning, but almost to the end, the bolt got too tight to hold the pliers on it. So, I have some one coming over later to check it out. I'm wondering if it's the bolt thats getting bent. Anyway, you can definitely tell that the pulley isn't even on straight/level. So, I'll let you know when I get the bolt out and get the new one in. Have you changed yours already? Thanks.

ML Barry

PS: OK the guy came over and got it out with an impact gun. The bolt had been put in cross-threaded previously and consequently not run down all the way. So, the key on the crankshaft is ruined along with the threads on the bolt and the threads in the crackshaft end. So, now I'm on the hunt for a tap that's big enough and another bolt. The guy that came and looked at it said he could replace the key without taking the crankshaft out, so we'll see about that. Good luck with yours.  

Hello again, Mr. Barry. I just got through working on mine and came in to check this page to see if you (or anyone) had responded. I must say my problem was small compared to yours! I feel badly for you.

Just a thought - perhaps there might be a large enough Helicoil to accommodate the size of the crankshaft bolt hole. If so, that might be a way to take care of the crank thread issue and allow you to use the same size bolt (new, of course). A larger bolt may not go through the hole in the pulley.

The 'solution' for my problem was to locate a number of 2" nails having a diameter slightly larger than the gap between the front mandrel and rear ring. After removing the radiator fan, I hammered six nails, evenly spaced, into the gap (rubber sleeve) between the two pieces with about 3/8" of the top end of the nails showing. As I hammered, I could tell that the nails were contacting metal on the mandrel and the outer ring. This seems to have cured the slipping problem, but time will tell how durable the 'fix' really is.

Another thought... you may be able to carefully dress the keyslot in your crankshaft using a dremmel tool with a thin, abrasive wheel. In fact, if the existing slot is too damaged, you can cut a new one at another part of the crank and use it - Take care.  

Well, Mr. Barry - it's been a few days since I last posted, but my 'nail' idea did NOT work at higher outside temperatures (higher compressor load). I should have realized that since the nails were round, they could be like rollers and allow the pulley/balancer combo to act like a roller bearing!

The next thing I tried was to thoroughly clean the mandrel and front edge of the rubber sleeve with brake degreaser, and apply super glue around the interface of the mandrel and rubber sleeve. I left the nails in so the glue would penetrate along their lengths and - hopefully - immobilize them. So far, it seems to be o.k. We'll see... Take care.