Automatic belt tensioner
 

Searched around and couldn’t find anything to do with service intervals for the part mentioned in the subject, anyone happen to know if the belt tensioner has a specific replacement interval or is it just a part that if it stops providing the correct tension then it’s time to replace? Just curious cause I noticed mine seems to not be providing the correct tension to the belt any more and the belt wear indicator on the tensioner itself, even after swapping in a new belt, stays at almost the outer limit indicator for belt wear. Already have a replacement on order, but would appreciate any input anyone can provide so I know what to watch out for as far as the tensioner goes

If it's at the belt wear indicator go ahead and replace it like you are. I don't think I've ever saw in the Ford workshop manual about replacing the belt tensioner at a certain mileage. But, I never did look.

A good rule of thumb is just replace it say if you're replacing the belt at 100k then you should definitely replace the tensioner.

thats gonna be a pretty hefty chunk of change then if the belt tensioner has to be replaced every time the belt does then, oem tensioner is a little over $200 plus about $80 for the belt and i believe nissan states to change the belt every 60,000 miles

All that they are is a heavy duty spring trying to return to resting mode.
Depending on how far out you are in the mark will point to a tired tensioner.
As long as the belt is the same size as OEM only thing that would change this would be belt thickness. A thinner belt in size will yield a looser spec.

This is usually a working or not working item. If it holds tension it should be fine until the next belt interval.

Ok that’s what I thought, thing that made me want to replace it is that even after replacing the old worn out oem belt with a new oem belt from Nissan is that the wear indicator on the tensioner itself is all the way out to where it would typically be when I know the belt needs to be replaced just barely outside the last mark. I bought the current tensioner as a used unit that supposedly only had about 60,000 on the tensioner assembly thinking maybe it would buy me some time till I got my hands on a new oem unit. It did its job, I’ll say that lol…the other thing that clued me in was when I went to take tension off the old belt the tensioner arm seemed to move with much less resistance than the last time I changed out a belt

$280 is a hefty chunk of change every 60,000 miles? Nowadays, that's 3 tanks of gas :rofl2:

I did not need this reminder:icon14::bowrofl:

My bearings started making noise around 110K miles. I just replaced all four of them. Kinda dumb the tensioner is one assembly but probably good to replace it anyway at this point. I already replaced the belt previously when I did the gallery gaskets.

3 markings on the tensioner
 

I may be wrong, but the tensioner has three markings on top. I just finished gallery gasket and don't have the time to put back the AC compressor. So I bought a shorter belt (NAPA 25-070500). The belt is tight and the marking is not at center. So I'm thinking that since it is a new belt or shorter, the marking is an indication of wear. We will find out soon enough when I'm on the road if it worked.

Name brand (AC delco, Gates, Conti) tensioners are $128-$153 and Gates belt $28 on Rockauto. :tiphat: