LS - 1st and 2nd Gen (1990-2000) Discussion topics related to the 1990 - 2000 Lexus LS400

Serpentine belt keeps throwing fan pulley out of alignment

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Old 12-19-16 | 07:48 PM
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Default Serpentine belt keeps throwing fan pulley out of alignment

Okay so for some reason my fan pulley sticks out about an inch further than the rest of my pulleys there for the serpentine belt keeps falling off I have searched the internet until I'm blue in the face and cannot find anything about it can somebody please help me? You can see that it sticks out much further than the other ones

Last edited by RussellS; 12-20-16 at 04:39 PM. Reason: Misspoke
Old 12-20-16 | 12:07 PM
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Wrong part, perhaps? The pulleys should be in EXACT alignment. I would think a dealer would be able to size up the situation quickly.
Old 12-20-16 | 12:09 PM
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Default No new parts

Know it has not been changed out it's the same part that's been on there I was driving it along down the freeway and then it popped off and when I went to put it on I noticed it was like that so that just barely happened it was right
Old 12-20-16 | 04:13 PM
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You might want to mention year and model.
Old 12-20-16 | 04:17 PM
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Default Good call.....

Yeah sorry I thought I had mentioned it it is a 93 LS400. Like I said I had been driving it for months since I bought it and then just all the sudden driving down the freeway it fell off I just don't know anything about these I'm wondering if maybe it's that fan pulley bracket or the bearing that's in it. But there is no play at all in the pulley I can grab it and jerk it around any direction and it doesn't move at all it wasn't vibrating or making any noises beforehand the clutch appears to be good. I apologize for grammar and punctuation I'm using my voice typing feature it doesn't always get it right
Old 12-20-16 | 09:57 PM
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moved to LS forum. best of luck.
Old 12-21-16 | 07:46 AM
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Originally Posted by RussellS
Yeah sorry I thought I had mentioned it it is a 93 LS400. Like I said I had been driving it for months since I bought it and then just all the sudden driving down the freeway it fell off I just don't know anything about these I'm wondering if maybe it's that fan pulley bracket or the bearing that's in it. But there is no play at all in the pulley I can grab it and jerk it around any direction and it doesn't move at all it wasn't vibrating or making any noises beforehand the clutch appears to be good. I apologize for grammar and punctuation I'm using my voice typing feature it doesn't always get it right
Sure it's not the crank pulley that is wandering? It can lose it's rubber adhesion and wander in or out.
Old 12-21-16 | 10:41 AM
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Very weird. I just went and looked at my '91 to see what mine looks like. Your fan pulley is most definitely shifted forward by about an inch. It should (of course) line up perfectly with the other pulley.

The "fan bracket" is the name of the part holding the fan pulley. I've replaced mine. They seem to go bad around 160+k miles. Replacing it is at least half way to a timing belt job, so it may be a good time to do that too if it is needed.

http://www.lexls.com/tutorials/engine/timingbelt.html
That page has tons of photos showing how to do the timing belt job, which includes fully exposing the fan bracket.

In that tutorial, the first good look at the fan bracket comes in figure 9) Remove the drive belt idler pulley - in that photo, the fan bracket is at the bottom, with nuts put back on the screws. Then in figure 10), it is below the label for "sensor connector," where you can see all 4 screws with nuts reinstalled. The cast Aluminum arms going out to the sides and upwards are all part of the fan bracket - it is a one-piece part, pressed together, cannot be disassembled. If I had to guess, I'd say the bearing in that fan bracket has failed and the shaft has come out one inch forward. To repair this, you'll need to remove the fan bracket, which you will then see requires a few more steps beyond what is shown there in the photo.

If I were you, I would start taking things off. At least all the way down to the fan. And see what that reveals. There has got to be something that has failed and is letting the fan pulley sit 1" forward of where it should be.

Last edited by oldskewel; 12-21-16 at 10:51 AM.
Old 12-21-16 | 02:04 PM
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For what its worth, on my 99 LS my fan bracket went bad at 166k miles, just like oldskewel mentioned above.
When it failed, it failed catastrophically.. Not quite like yours; but one thing is for sure, it was sitting out about an inch further just like you've pictured.
Old 12-21-16 | 03:26 PM
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Default Not the crank

The crank pulley is still in good shape lined up with the other pulleys that are in there it's only the fan 1. I just think it's weird that there's no play in it at all it still spins perfectly it's solid. Just really weird I'll go ahead and start pulling it apart I appreciate your input I was at an absolute loss never seen anything like it.
Old 12-21-16 | 09:37 PM
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Cant really tell anything from the pic.
Old 12-21-16 | 10:04 PM
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Fan bracket is toast.

Looks like this:


Aisin makes one if you don't want to spend on a new OEM part, ~$115 shipped.
https://smile.amazon.com/Aisin-FBT-0.../dp/B0049LBPBO

BIt of labor but the parts bill won't be too bad. Radiator and some other stuff has to come off.

Good luck and kep us updated.
Old 12-22-16 | 04:10 AM
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So if it turns freely still and the bearings feel okay, it is very likely (if my memory of it) the pin has moved out, I would think grabbing it by hand and wiggling it a bit and pulling towards the front you may just pull it off.
Old 12-23-16 | 10:48 AM
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Either way he needs a new bracket. At that mileage there's a good chance the bearing has seized causing the pulley to walk itself out. the pulley is not bolted onto the bearing like others.
Old 01-04-17 | 08:34 AM
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Default Bearing slipped

So the bearing was still good it just slipped out of the slot. I replaced the part and now the car is sputtering really bad. I tried to look and see if I left something disconnected or hook something up wrong I cannot for the life of me figure it out if you guys could help that would be awesome any ideas would be appreciated thank you



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