Harmonic Balancer

My mechanic sez the harmonic balancer in my '96 is disintegrating, and
wearing a hole in the timimg belt cover. He's asking decent money to
replace it, including waiting a week for the part to arrive at the dealer.

Anybody else dealt with a disintegrating harmonic balancer? Or is this some
kinda Zen thing he's trying to sell me?

On Tue, 19 Jul 2005 13:00:14 -0400, Larry wrote:

> My mechanic sez the harmonic balancer in my '96 is disintegrating, and
> wearing a hole in the timimg belt cover. He's asking decent money to
> replace it, including waiting a week for the part to arrive at the dealer.
>
> Anybody else dealt with a disintegrating harmonic balancer? Or is this some
> kinda Zen thing he's trying to sell me?

Are these the same setup on the 1800 engines that they are on the later
1600 engines? If they are you will KNOW when they go bad and you will
soon be on a first name basis with the tow truck driver. If it is wearing
a hole in the timing belt cover failure is imminent.
Today I replaced the harmonic balancer on my 92, along with the timing
belt (highly recommended, as almost everything has to come off for access
anyway) and the crank seal.
I DON'T think my failure of the harmonic balancer was a natural occurrence
but am glad things worked out the way they did. (Long story) Failure of
the harmonic balancer/front pulley can result in very expensive repairs
due to damage to the end of the crankshaft. If you need the car the parts
should be able to be shipped next day air for an additional fee of $15 or
$20. I would definitely MAKE SURE he saves the old parts for you. Look
at the machined faces on the balancer and the cam sprocket for damage. It
is easy to know if he is telling the truth or not.
Good luck.