Stock R4 compressor MOD and E-fan hook up HOW TO

[kewljay223]

hey fabi. like suggested, the only thing i think you could do is try and find the smallest pullies you can to replace both the tensioner and the one under the TB. that alone will help free up some space. also try and see if you can fit a smaller belt. maybe a 1/2 - 1" smaller if the tensioner allows you to. i dont remember how much "swing" your tensioner has. that would stop the tensioner from "pushing" the belt so far down if you understand what im saying.... it would make that pully sit higher causing the belt not to touch the water pump. get it?

if that doesnt work then your next best bet would be to just not use the pully under the TB at all. completely bypass that one. Obviously this would require a significantly smaller belt. id guess 2" smaller or so... i personally did try that on my setup and it kinda worked. but my tensioner (LS tensioner on water pump) wasnt pushing on the belt hard enough which caused it to slip under load plus its kind of a long distanse between the tensioner and alti which allowed it to flop. BUT with how yours is setup, i wouldnt think you would have that kinda issue as long as the belt was the right size.

i think that route or the smaller pullies will solve your problems.

[Mickeymotormount]

My bracket is just like the ones you guys used or the same as the Malibu site. That was standard on my truck as well. Don't forget, the V-6 and V-8 engines were similar in almost every respect except for 2 cylinders being lopped off. The bolt holes on the front of either engines were in the same location so one bracket could be used on either engine.

Fabi, I do recall going to the junkyard and scrounging a couple of idler pulleys from some GM V-6 cars. I physically measured mine and then went and found some slightly smaller ones so I wouldn't get any belt rubbage at the water pump pulley. Before changing idlers, my clearance might have been about 1/8" max. I found that to be a little tight for my tastes so I opted for a smaller pulley. By mixing an matching pulleys, I ended up with about 3/16" clearance and haven't had any issues.

Just for kicks, here's another pic of my bracket which was originally installed on my 5.7. It's laying on the cart with the 6.0.

[kewljay223]

BTW, what TB do you have? I know its off topic but i like the blue anodize. obviously aftermarket. is it bigger? and what for?

[droopyzda1]

[QUOTE=fabianss357;518024]Thanks droopy,
I would be happy with a 1/4 inch...
This is what mine looks like now. You can see how it bows up where its making HARD contactvwith the waterpump.




I know you said you tried every possible configuration with the pulleys. But have you tried swapping the tensioner pulley to the spot umder the a/c comp then moving that one under the alternator and then the one from under the alternator to the tensioner ? Or you can remove the upper idler pulleys and measure them, then go hunting at a junkyard for smaller ones, it should solve the problem. Remember what ever pulleys you get from the junkyard, make sure you get the pulley, the top washer, the bolt, and the mount that goes behind the pulley. For one of my pulleys, i had to make the washer hole slightly wider for the bolt to fit.

[Mickeymotormount]

My tensioner pulley and idler pulley under the alternator are definitely smaller. The idler below the A/C compressor is larger. I will try to post a pic tomorrow. I have to remove the air intake tube to get a better look at it.

[Mickeymotormount]

Here's pics and dimensions of the idler/tensioner pulleys. I even took a pic of the clearance, which to my surprise, is tighter than when I first completed the swap. Not sure why but I haven't had any issues with the truck.


After looking at the pics myself, a simple idler pulley swap to the right(in the pics) of the compressor to a 3" idler and a swap to a smaller belt would be the answer.

[chvz99]

just wanted to share some info,
if you have efans and want them to turn on when the a/c is on,
you can use the a/c switch mounted in the a/c condenser 95 and older,
just provide ground to one terminal on the switch and run the other wire to your relay trigger ground, this way if you have a/c on they come on and stay on all the time.
this is the way I did it on mine. when a/c is off the fans will be in normal operation.

[kewljay223]

just wanted to share some info,
if you have efans and want them to turn on when the a/c is on,
you can use the a/c switch mounted in the a/c condenser 95 and older,
just provide ground to one terminal on the switch and run the other wire to your relay trigger ground, this way if you have a/c on they come on and stay on all the time.
this is the way I did it on mine. when a/c is off the fans will be in normal operation.

good post. like I said I tried that switch but couldn't figure out when it actuated or exactly how it worked. that would make things a lot simpler.

[fabianss357]

Thanks a ton John, that really helps out.
Since my bracket is different its really hard to see a size on pics.
I dont have any yards in my area that will still let you wander around and pull parts. I have to have year, make, and model for almost everything around here.
This will help tremendously with finding the right pulleys!

And wow that is a tight clearance!
I was hoping I would have just a bit more.
I have thought about pulling the idler mount off and drilling a new index hole so that the entire idler arm moves counterclockwise just a few degrees.
Ill swap some smaller pullies and then play with it.

[Mickeymotormount]

I didn't know there were different brackets. I thought they were all the same. The only difference I see is the idler spring assembly and that I know has at least 2 different types. Anyway, I'm glad this info helped you out. Good luck!!!!!!