Tensioner Pulley noise easy and cheap fix

[catbass]

Hi

I have a 2004 Mazda 3 2.3L 4drs. Does this Gates part fit/works as a replacement?

EDIT: Important new information added

Thanks to Bishop we now know that Gates pulley # 38008 is not correct for Mazda 3. He confirmed that it is too narrow and will cause belt squeal pretty much right away, which means the belt can be damaged.
The correct Gates pulley # is 36326.
It is also worth mentioning that this pulley is metal.

Just to keep the important info on top, here are the correct pulley numbers:

DAYCO: 89015
GATES: 36326
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OK guys and gals, I have found a very cheap and easy fix for noisy serpentine belt tensioner pulley.

My tensioner pulley started making slight squeaking / squealing noises about 3 years ago (car is 2006), so basically about 1 to 1.5 years after purchase. It was very faint and only during cold morning starts and at certain RPM's. I brought it to the dealer and of course they said it's normal.

I decided to just keep driving and keep an eye on it while the car was under warranty. Since then nothing really happened, I am out of warranty as of last year, but the noise is getting louder and louder and doesn't go away when the car is warmed up anymore.

I know the bearing in the tensioner pulley is shot, I removed it early this year to re-pack the bearing with grease, it was dry and had side to side play, but re-packing it with grease seemed to help a bit and got me up until this point. I knew from the beginning that it was only a band aid fix.

Well, the temps are getting lower and lower and that tensioner pulley was making me feel uneasy, I don't want the pulley to seize when it's -25C outside and take out the belt with it when I'm stuck in traffic. So I started looking for other solution.

First I called the dealer and they only sell the whole tensioner assembly, which is about $140 +tax. Not my coup of tea, since the tensioner itself is perfectly fine. Lucky, when I originally removed the pulley to re-grease it, I measured it. The dimensions are 70mm OD, 17mm ID and 28mm wide, flanged with 6 grooves.
DAYCO # 89015 and GATES 36326. match these dimensions. I went to Dayco website and it turns out that they have tons of part stores across GTA that carry their products. They even have a handy store locator on their website.

Anyway, I called few places in Mississauga and most have the pulley in stock or can easily order one for you. The best part... it's about $27+tax.

The pulley is very easy to change in your driveway and will take about 10-15 minutes.

I changed mine yesterday and with -14C this morning the belt and tensioner pulley were dead quiet.
I will keep you posted how it goes for the next few weeks or months, but I don't expect any problems at all, since the pulley uses exact same bearing as the OEM one.
I took some pics while I was doing the work and if you guys want me to post a short How To or just the pics, let me know, I can do it in few weeks.


Again the numbers are:

DAYCO: 89015
GATES: 36326

[Tollis]

So I installed the Gates 36326 yesterday but after about 200km of driving i've noticed the bolt is backing itself out. Heard a very quiet metallic sound and decided to open the hood and take a look. Has anyone else had this back out on them.

[stock3]

So I installed the Gates 36326 yesterday but after about 200km of driving i've noticed the bolt is backing itself out. Heard a very quiet metallic sound and decided to open the hood and take a look. Has anyone else had this back out on them.

This is most likely because the belt is shifted on one of the pulleys, most likely the crank shaft pulley.
Make sure that the belt wraps around all pulleys properly and aligns with all grooves.

[catbass]

Hi all

I purchased the GATES: 36326 for less than $10 included tax in BC, Canada. It is a metal version. Replaced it was very easy. 10 mins job.

Mazda 3 2004 GT 2.3L 4drs GFX version
135K
Still a good vehicle to drive.

[ptgrad2012]

gonna sub for future references

[morganc]

Great find, thanks for sharing. I know what I'm doing this weekend

[evildiesel]

i'm at 56000 km and i get a squeling from the serpentine belt when the engine is really warmed up, will the pulley help me? or should just go for total belt replacement.

squealing sound is the belt slipping. check your belt for wear and tear. is your ac on when it does it. or was it wet out some times water gets underneath it and it will slipp. sounds like your belt may have stretched

[evildiesel]

This is most likely because the belt is shifted on one of the pulleys, most likely the crank shaft pulley.
Make sure that the belt wraps around all pulleys properly and aligns with all grooves.

the bolt regardless shouldn't be backing it self out regardless where the belt is..

[jaymontiiz]

i have a 2.3 06 i hear a ticking noise whenever im crusing is that what this thread is about?

[SilkyDrips]

sorry to bring this back from the dead once again but I just got my Gates 36326 and I was wondering how hard is this to install without removing belts? and are there any tips for installing?

I have a 2006 Mazda 3 GS Sport

[tmpz]

sorry to bring this back from the dead once again but I just got my Gates 36326 and I was wondering how hard is this to install without removing belts? and are there any tips for installing?

I have a 2006 Mazda 3 GS Sport

You don't need to remove the belt, just off to side so you can slip the belt off and slip it back after replacing the pulley. The tricky part is that the part moves in such a way that gives you enough slack to slip it off

[Kiewan]

Subscribed. That familiar squeal started about a month ago.

[Google]

Just out of curiosity, for those who did the pulley replacement themselves, how long after you just replaced the pulley did you have to replace the entire assembly (unit)?

[silverstarmazda]

04 mazda here. Got the dayco pulley and replaced it with the loose oem one and the noise got even louder. Near constant noise under load. The only difference i found between both pulleys is the outer most rib on the pulley is slightly different. The old one is angled while the new one is stepped. I would think its because im using an old belt with a new pulley that they arnt worn in together (much like brake pads/rotors) so the slight diffrenece in pulley/belt surface is causing the noise.

In the meantime I've put the old pulley back on and will replace the belts with the new pulley

[silverstarmazda]

new belts and pulley are in and they create zero noise now.

[xriddler]

new belts and pulley are in and they create zero noise now.

Which belt did you replace? did you end up replacing the tensioner itself or just the pulley? I just got a used 2011 and this noise is driving me insane. I don't know why i didn't hear it while test driving.

[silverstarmazda]

Which belt did you replace? did you end up replacing the tensioner itself or just the pulley? I just got a used 2011 and this noise is driving me insane. I don't know why i didn't hear it while test driving.

replaced the accessory and A/C belts along with just the pulley. left the tensioner in place since it was giving adequate spring load

[PatrickRodriguz]

Okay guys, I have replaced the pulley with a Dayco and the gurgling sound still persists! Even Erin Mills Mazda replaced my entire tensioner assembly and the sound is still there! I have been scouring these forms and the fix to this problem was the tensioner assembly needing to be replaced (to my belief). So what else could it possibly be?! Here is a sample sound of the problem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tY_u...ist=WL&index=1 *Not my audio recording. Just accurate.

[silverstarmazda]

Okay guys, I have replaced the pulley with a Dayco and the gurgling sound still persists! Even Erin Mills Mazda replaced my entire tensioner assembly and the sound is still there! I have been scouring these forms and the fix to this problem was the tensioner assembly needing to be replaced (to my belief). So what else could it possibly be?! Here is a sample sound of the problem.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tY_u...ist=WL&index=1 *Not my audio recording. Just accurate.

now i could be wrong, but that kinda sounds like a valve issue. what kind of oil are you using?

[JT87]

I called Napa to see if they have the pulley 36326 of Gates in stock. The guy says its for Mazda Tribute/ ford escape...
Is the pulley exactly the same as OEM? It seems it is, but why 36326 isn`t in their system for pulley replacement for Mazda 3?

[sarujo]

I called Napa to see if they have the pulley 36326 of Gates in stock. The guy says its for Mazda Tribute/ ford escape...
Is the pulley exactly the same as OEM? It seems it is, but why 36326 isn`t in their system for pulley replacement for Mazda 3?

2010 2.0L MZR here. Installed the 36326 last month and they looked identical. Has been working perfectly thus far.

Gates does not list a replacement pulley for the Mazda 3 specifically - you can check Gates online website. My guess is they want people to buy the entire tensioner assembly with new pulley instead.

[JT87]

2010 2.0L MZR here. Installed the 36326 last month and they looked identical. Has been working perfectly thus far.

Gates does not list a replacement pulley for the Mazda 3 specifically - you can check Gates online website. My guess is they want people to buy the entire tensioner assembly with new pulley instead.

Between the gates and dayco, i'm better off with the gates because its not a plastic pulley. Other than that?
Some have put the dayco pulley and needed to replace the belt because there was still some noise.

[StUpId8000]

has anyone tried to put this bearing in the metal pulley? 6203-2ZJEM. someone posted about it on a different forum but never said if it worked.

[MandaPanda94]

I'm having the same problem... a sound similar to this:
https://soundcloud.com/user943064652/sets/engine-noise
coming from the accessory belt area. I did the good ol spray bottle test to see if it was the belt and it doesn't seem to be the belt, so i moved the belt to check the pulleys and it seems that the tensioner pulley has a bit of give/wiggle to it. i assume thats what's causing the noise... now im wondering whether to replace it or not. and i assume i can just replace the pulley and not the whole tensioner assembly? How difficult is that to do? |

2008 mazda3 GT automatic here.

[FD22]

I'm having the same problem... a sound similar to this:
https://soundcloud.com/user943064652/sets/engine-noise
coming from the accessory belt area. I did the good ol spray bottle test to see if it was the belt and it doesn't seem to be the belt, so i moved the belt to check the pulleys and it seems that the tensioner pulley has a bit of give/wiggle to it. i assume thats what's causing the noise... now im wondering whether to replace it or not. and i assume i can just replace the pulley and not the whole tensioner assembly? How difficult is that to do? |

2008 mazda3 GT automatic here.

Correct. You can replace just the pulley if you wish. It's a pretty simple job to do so, and there's many detailed walkthroughs you can find online (YouTube) to assist you.