Engine Belt tension

Mustang gt 2001@ · May 27, 2020

Hi all . I have a 91 GT Mustang. Long story short I Changed a few things and needed a new belt. After trying about seven starting with the the string technique and then going up and down in sizes I ended up with one that seem to work pretty good. however the tensioner is pretty far to the right. Is this acceptable or should I try and go another half inch smaller? Thanks.

KRUISR · May 27, 2020

What pulleys are you running and what routing are you using? In my opinion I would want the tensioner to be approximately midway between tensioner position with no belt and as far as can be moved with wrench attached.

Just my 2 cents.

Mustang gt 2001@ · May 28, 2020

Thanks . That’s what I was thinking. That’s where I was before I rerouted the belt and moved things around. Has anyone tried this before as far as do you think a half inch smaller would get me there?thanks .

mikestang63 · May 28, 2020

what things did you change and how is the belt routed. The flat side of the belt needs to be running against the water pump. Do to the inaccurate tolerances in the brackets you may need to go up or down a size

Mustang gt 2001@ · May 28, 2020

Thanks for the help . I was able to go down a half inch on the belt to get the Tensioner right in the middle . Started with sting and went through about 7 belts to get it just right . Glad the auto parts store were cool about it .

Rdub6 · May 29, 2020

Mustang gt 2001@ said:
Hi all . I have a 91 GT Mustang. Long story short I Changed a few things and needed a new belt. After trying about seven starting with the the string technique and then going up and down in sizes I ended up with one that seem to work pretty good. however the tensioner is pretty far to the right. Is this acceptable or should I try and go another half inch smaller? Thanks.

Just reading your thread and it looks like I am a hair more to the right than you are. I have no AC, no smog, with the relocated power steering pump. I am running a 75” belt. It looks like I can probably get away with the 73”, which would put my tensioner back in range. I have a 73.5” on the shelf..... I’ll have to give that a try.
I never noticed that before..... thanks for the thread!!

Mustang gt 2001@ · May 30, 2020

I’m glad my thread was able to help another person as well . Thanks for posting .

Mustang5L5 · May 30, 2020

The belts tend to stretch over time. I usually try and find a belt that is closer to the “tight” end of the scale. After some use they tend to be near the middle or loose end

Rdub6 · May 30, 2020

Mustang5L5 said:
The belts tend to stretch over time. I usually try and find a belt that is closer to the “tight” end of the scale. After some use they tend to be near the middle or loose end

That’s probably why my 73.5 is on the shelf. Felt way too tight. If I left it, it probably would have been fine!

KRUISR · May 31, 2020

I have A/C but no smog and underdrive pulleys - I am using a 82.4" belt. I am using the belt routing shown on the middle pic on the left.

Engine Belt tension

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So while I wait to figure out my rear end issues

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That is…until I whipped out my Bissell

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So while I wait to figure out my rear end issues

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Engine Belt tension

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