Hi. I'm currently running a 16V turbo with B234F bottom that is 88-90 production with manual tensioner. The original tensioner failed and I replaced it with a new one, but something is wrong with it. It makes the belt walk outward almost to the edge of cam gears. I've tried reinstalling it, flipping the tensioner spring, manually tensioning it tight myself, everything i can think of. Original tensioner held the belt perfectly, until the roller failed and pulled the belt inward almost to the point it slipped inside the cam gears. I really don't want to buy another ****ty stock tensioner for the car. Can I replace the original tensioner with let's say a VAG tensioner? I've heard it's possible at least with the blocks fitted with the automatic tensioner originally. Any ideas?
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Different tensioner for B234F
- Thread starter Jonesyboi
- Start date
oldschoolvolvo
Well-known member
- Joined
- Mar 27, 2004
- Location
- Lancaster, PA
^^
JerryJS8
der Junge
- Joined
- Sep 12, 2004
- Location
- Normal Saxony
NVM, I see the question was about a tensioner alternative for the B234F block and not the B230 Block combo, but I've never had problems with the manual or automatic stock tensioners on the B234F.
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Yeah, I bought a non OEM tensioner and I think it was bent from the start. I wonder if I could replace the roller under the cam gears with the Vag tensioner and just send it after.
dalek
Benchracer Tribe
- Joined
- Oct 18, 2005
- Location
- Orange Alert, NC
If you still have the old factory one, have you considered just replacing the bearing?
Nope, the original that I replaced was thrown into the bin and the replacement tensioner seems to be bent from the start or something. Thought about replacing the roller right under the camgears with a vag tensioner and throwing a normal roller in the same spot as the original tensioner. There must be someone who has done this
hiperfauto
The Librarian
- Joined
- Nov 18, 2011
- Location
- So Cal
The tensioner has to go on the slack side of the belt. The cam timing will change as the belt is tensioned otherwise. Also, an automatic tensioner can't handle the load.
Can’t imagine many people on the board used b234f bottom ends with the factory tensioner…. Most of us had to solve the problem of not having a tensioner when we swapped the b234f head onto the b230 block one way or another… **** I ended up walking by a Subaru in the jy one day and saw it’s tensioner and said “hey I think that’ll work” coupled with the 850 belt.
Find out what the heck the problem is with your current setup…. Paging people that had a factory b234f…. MikeSr?
Post a picture of your setup so others can see what you’re talking about.
Find out what the heck the problem is with your current setup…. Paging people that had a factory b234f…. MikeSr?
Post a picture of your setup so others can see what you’re talking about.
- Joined
- May 27, 2003
- Location
- Acworth, Ga. USA
My B234f( still on a stand in my garage)has a hydraulic tensioner. Manual tensioner is different. I know Volvo had a special tool to set the tension on manual ones, calibrated in some oddball units. Someone figured out the exact measurements for the correct position on inches or mm, I believe I saw that a decade ago on Brickboard.
Main problems with B234F are the bearings in the pulleys and the oil pump gear breaking. The gear is cast and people gorilla down the bolt and crack the gear, which fails soon after that. With any age on the motor, you should replace the gear and bolt with a new part and torque carefully to spec.
Also another fail point is the balance shaft belt. When it goes it takes out the main belt and bye-bye valves. The solution is to just cut the balance belt off and hurl it into the bin. TB folklore say you should plug the oil holes after removing the balance shaft and it’s fixtures. You don’t have to do any of that, just toss the belt and congratulate yourself for removing a failure point. No effect on operation at all.
Main problems with B234F are the bearings in the pulleys and the oil pump gear breaking. The gear is cast and people gorilla down the bolt and crack the gear, which fails soon after that. With any age on the motor, you should replace the gear and bolt with a new part and torque carefully to spec.
Also another fail point is the balance shaft belt. When it goes it takes out the main belt and bye-bye valves. The solution is to just cut the balance belt off and hurl it into the bin. TB folklore say you should plug the oil holes after removing the balance shaft and it’s fixtures. You don’t have to do any of that, just toss the belt and congratulate yourself for removing a failure point. No effect on operation at all.
I've removed the balance shafts altogether and plugged the holes. I've replaced the oil pump gear bolt with a 10.9 bolt and going to replace the entire gear with another, more sturdy one. Going to test fit a vag tensioner from a 1.9tdi engine and one from an old 16v vw passat, atleast some folks over here in Finland have used the latter one on their B230+B234F head builds. The reason why I haven't done it is because I know with 110% certainty that someone has done this before, knows exactly what tensioner to use, what bolt and washers etc to go with it and what belt is suitable. I have not been willing to buy like four different tensioners and five different belts just to find out none of them are suitable and once again I have to go to the autoparts store tail between my legs, returning the old parts in shame and ordering more.
But, I will try those tensioners along with the belts that I already have and will report my findings, might even make a real post about it, so people running B234F engines may ditch the original tensioner in favor of a better, more reliable one.