Trouble changing Auxillary belt - automatic tensioner

[CaptainHair]

My aux belt started to give up the ghost, luckily i caught it pretty quickly and limped over to buy a new one.

Having a bit of trouble fitting it though, I've got a PAS + AC model so its got the automatic tensioner that bolts on with an allen head bolt and can manually release tension using a square-drive hole. Now I've changed the belt before and not had any troubles, but it was a while ago so can't remember if I used any neat trick or whatnot to release the tension. After damaging the 3 tools I had that used the small square drive I gave up, removed the tensioner itself from the car which in hindsight was a mistake as I still need to apply tension to the belt.

So i was wondering if anyone has any tips or suggestions to slackening off the tension for fitting the new belt?

Also I think that now I've removed the tensioner, I'm going to have to take it to a proper peugeot garage that has a fancy electronic tensioning tool? Haynes is rather vague about this.

[Uberderv]

It should have a spring loaded tensioner which you use a double spanner trick from the wheel arch to move it.

   

[Uberderv]

I think the bolt on the black idler is a 16mm.

[CaptainHair]

oooooooooh, yep. Well I'm a fool, I was fiddling around with the other tensioner, I knew something felt off from when I did it last time.

Thanks very much, I'll just put the other tensioner back as it was then, doh. I think you've solved my problem right there

[Uberderv]

No probs I don't know what the procedure is for fitting the manual idler but I guess half way on it's adjustment????

[Eeyore]

put the automatic tensioner on and use a proper square drive to release tension on the tensioner. Im still not entirely sure what the problem is but you definitely dont want to try and fit the tensioner whilst tensioned as even if you can get the bolts in youll probably cross thread them and damage the block :/

[CaptainHair]

put the automatic tensioner on and use a proper square drive to release tension on the tensioner. Im still not entirely sure what the problem is but you definitely dont want to try and fit the tensioner whilst tensioned as even if you can get the bolts in youll probably cross thread them and damage the block :/

Yeah got it sorted this morning. The problem was that there are 2 tensioners, the upper one (known as 'pully' in most diagrams i've seen) which you can use its 15mm bolt to release tension, then put allen key in hole to lock. The lower tensioner has the hole for a square drive to release tension, doesnt seem to have any way to keep it locked, bolts on using a single allen head bolt.

I forgot about the upper one and started faffing with the lower one, which i should have left well alone. So I put the lower tensioner back in place, then released the tension on the upper one, locked it with an allen key, slipped new belt on (tight fit mind!) then released tension and everything was good again.

So yeah, it was basically my own error of mistaking the lower tensioner as the one I needed to fiddle with. Once Uberderv posted that pic and I saw the tensioner, I immediatly remembered how I was supposed to do it.

So thanks to both of you for the help, car sounds so much quieter and smoother now I'm quite amazed!

[Poodle]

Glad you got it sorted, thanks for updating.

[pug306driver]

The auto tensioner, not sure if that is removable with the engine in situ, anyone know if it is please?????

The way you locked the auto tensioner is correct. The eccentric manual tensioner, with the auto tensioner locked with the allan key, should be adjusted until the auto tensioner locking pin is free. You can see the "channel" mark on the auto tensioner alloy.

[Poodle]

It is, but you'll need to remove the top mount and lower the engine on a jack.

[pug306driver]

Cheers poodle