The thing I love about Commodores and Falcons, is that if you've got a problem it's always the same things that fuck up on em. Yes they had their faults, but at least they were the usual common faults. If you have a problem, chances are at least 50 people on a forum have had the same one. ...And also Sean don't feel deflated by the last vid, not at all crap content. We're all human and don't always do things right the first time. I appreciate the fact you were upfront about it and didn't just hide it into a single video. These days in the Instagram perfect world, it's good to see things not going to plan!! Cheers
Everything I've faced so far are common issues, and luckily the cars are old enough that they were around in the golden age of forums. I don't know what we'd do without all those archive posts.
This comment is bang on. He comes across as the type of bloke you could have a beer with even if you have never met him before. Definitely a goal when Covid stops screwing things up.
Don’t apologise for making good content. Your step by step guides have been flawless and if anything seeing you tackle another problem first hand while you were trying to fix another is exactly what happens in the automotive Industry. So showing us Initiative and speedy recovery’s are necessary here which made you provide more valuable content then you seem to realise in said video ✌🏼
With the Auto box have used the crossmember a piece of solid wood a wooden wedge and an old drive belt in the grooves , smack the wedge with a short handled hammer to lock it . Have used the 22mm socket 3/8 is lower profile with a lump of 4x2 on the end of the ratchet handle shocked it with a short handled 4 lb er. The three finger 75 mm model bearing puller (3 spokes on the balancer) if the bolt is too long cut it and repoint it . Drilled a small spud hole in the balancer bolt to ctr the puller if any further removals were reqd. A 14 mm 9/16" ratchet head spanner works a treat . As you did :- A piece of cardboard or 3 ply on the radiator saves leaving your name and address all over the radiator with the tools . Thanks for the Video .
For those wondering how to break the initial hold of the balancer bolt on an auto, or an easier method on a manual, here is the awesome backyarders method. Attach a breaker bar, or a pipe over a normal wrench, to the socket. Place socket on balancer bolt and thread end of breaker bar UNDER the DRIVERS chassis rail. Preferable to ensure the balancer bolt is in such position that the breaker bar is as close as possible to the underside of the chassis rail. Then give the starter a quick flick on and off, FFS DO NOT START THE CAR!!! You will hear the bar smack the underside of the rail and the bolt will be loose. Works great and works every time! I haven't had to do a balancer on an A or B series, but I believe it should be possible to replace one of the torque converter to flywheel bolts with a long version that pokes outside of the access hole. You could turn the engine until the bolt impacts the edge of the hole and use that to stop the crank turning. Probably safest to put a piece of wood between the bolt and alloy to ensure it doesn't get damaged. Pretty sure the bolt is M12 x 1.25
Sean, I think you earned yourself a KFC snackbox for your work mate! Don't feel bad about the last video you did. Not everything always goes to plan & it's not always a quick 10min fix with fancy editing. One of the things that put me off the motoring shows on Discovery Turbo was the fake drama & the tacky scripted acting to try & make the program more interesting. Warts & all is what people want as well as fun moments. In the end when you take the XR6T out on the road, we want to see that smile on your dial & it'll show that you achieved something you would never had attempted years ago. Holdens & Fords each have their own foibles. I've had horror stories with my Holden Ute & everyone has a story or two. My latest one involves a VU SS ute that belongs to a guy I know that a mate of mine & myself have been working on. We changed the front end to a V2 Monaro with a V2 Monaro bonnet, we changed the sailplane to a HSV Maloo one & had to cut into the hardlid to make it fit perfectly. Just recently the owner bought a fibreglass faux HSV Maloo rear bar & side skirts. Anyone will tell you that fibreglass body kits don't always fit perfectly & the rear bar during the manufacturing process was curved in the middle. After a bit of thought, we got a bit of metal hollow square tube & fibreglassed it in to get it straight and it's worked. It's currently being painted at the moment & will be ready to install on Saturday.
I've done the "placing the breaker bar and turning your engine with key for a milli second" to crack the harmonic balancer bolt a few times with great success , works first time like a treat haha
An excellent result! And a timely reminder, so I just went out and checked my harmonic balancer. It's OK: pulley and spoke boss are flush at the rubber ring joint. The belt on my Barra over the water pump pulley is sitting in the same position as your does in the video. You can hide the frayed edge of your belt by re-installing the other way around, so the frayed edge faces the engine!
Awesome content, mate. Really looking forward to seeing this one finished! We need more clean falcons on the road. There arent's as many left as there were, and that trend will only continue
man I liked the cliffhanger episode. Nothing is ever straightforward. I Had a MightyBoy and took me weeks to get shit done on it. But when it was figured out it was worth the hassles. Good shit as always Sean. 👍🏽
Just discovered and joined your channel. Good to see someone passionate about our two Aussie legends, the Falcon and Commodore. Came across your channel via HubNut as you helped him get his AU Fairmont (Ugly Betty) from the shaky isles to old Blighty
Great video mate, I'm due to do the same thing on my AU Tradesmen ute. That main seal has always slow leaked on my ute since the day I got it, not enough that it's a problem but enough that it's clucking annoying. New seal and sealant stops it for a while but it always comes back to haunt me in the end. Although that pulley is expensive (think I paid about $150 for mine back in the day) it's worth every cent. I appreciate the knowledge and passion you have for these cars and grateful that you share it with us. Anybody who thinks that a part is "impossible to break/come apart" has clearly never owned a AU/BA Falcon.👍
My BA Fairlane is leaking oil from the crankshaft seal, lucky my mechanic will be replacing that and the harmonic balancer in one go. Not bad of a 20.5 year old car and just over 202,000 kms 👍🏻 love your videos ❤
Folks never change a balancer without fitting a Genuine or at least good quality new cover seal.Oil is the enemy to the rubber encased balancer and silicone is a band aid at best.Put a smear of grease on the balancer bolt flange and thread, it will help in getting a perfect torque setting.Finally never bounce on a tension wrench as this guy did.Keep your arm at right angles to the wrench and pull it towards yourself. Finesse is needed on these sorts of jobs. For the record i'm a Motor Mechanic for over 30 years and specialize in high performance Fords. Cheers
Great vid, as usual. Had to take the harmonic balancer off the AU about 2 weeks ago. Being a tight arse, I wasn't about to buy the puller. Ended up making my own. Worked a treat.
LMFAO at the armchair experts claiming harmonic balancers can't separate! Of course they don't come "off", the rubber that holds the two steel pieces (the pulley and the center) perishes over time and separates allowing the pulley piece to "escape" leaving the center piece still firmly bolted to the crank. I've had one separate on me with catastrophic consequences for the fan and fan shroud. I was young and ignorant at the time and should not have ignored the disturbing shrieking noises and burnt rubber smells emanating from the front of the engine. Harmonic balancers are definitely wear items that should be inspected and replaced if there is any sign of the rubber deteriorating. Do NOT put silicone on the front main seal! Not sure what idiot recommended that, it won't work at all. Replace it if it is leaking. I've never done a Barra, but on most engines it's a very easy job and the seal is usually very inexpensive.
I've never paid attention to them before, but knowing what I do now it is pretty easy to check for issues without even pulling the thermofans. It's always interesting hearing conflicting information too. Some say put a bit of silicon sealant in the keyway of the balancer to stop oil getting through. But I suppose if the seal is doing its job, you wouldn't need that second layer of defence.
@@MotoringBoxTV and Matthew, when i did my engine, the silicon on the keyway was something i read to do too, might have been in my ellery's manual, but it did have a dollop of silicon already on the balancer keyway when i pulled it off, i didnt bother reapplying...
@@MotoringBoxTV clean the bore of the balancer and the snout of the crank, then put a thin smear of silicone on the nose of the crank and around the keyway and another thin smear around the bore of the balancer, but keep it away from the front main seal and the outside sealing surface of the balancer. Put the tiniest thin smear of fresh engine oil around the outside sealing surface of the balancer to help stop it snagging the seal on the way back in. Not the worst idea to use a new crank bolt too, since it's now been on and off a couple of times. - actual qualified mechanic.
Had the exact same problem about a month ago on my 04 xr6t, opened the bonnet and rubber from the belt was everywhere. Just caught it at the right time. Great video mate keep it up and stuff old mate 🤣.
Another great video mate. When you do the turbo oil feed line remove the airbox and get at it from the top, I've done two and believe me it's much easier than doing it from under the car. You're going to need a deep style socket, 24 mm from memory.
Speaking of jobs that turned into nightmares. I took the factory inline turbo oil feed filter out to remove the mesh filter inside, but when i put it back on i snapped it off (it was nowhere near tight). The thickness of it is super thin. A new one cost me $175. I was lucky to get the snapped threads out of the first fitting that threads into the block.
Helped my mate do his balancer on his fg turbo.His was actually broken, so when we undid the bolt it literally fell off.The front seal was almost gone from the balancer flogging it to death.
I tackled my wheel bearing today in my BA ute. Turns out I replaced the wrong bearing, I was supposed to do the passenger side. I replaced the drivers.. last time I turn spanners on 2 hours sleep. But good video, and don’t feel bad. Things never go right first time around for a lot of people
Oh that would have sucked!! If it makes you feel any better, people usually say to replace both sides at once, as the other side is usually not far off failing too.
Congrats. Harmonic balancers definitely fail. I believe one reason they fail is that the rubber can can become contaminated by leaking oil. If you think about the vibration and stresses they are subjected to, it's not surprising they come apart after a while. That's why they sell new ones. Also, best to put the gearbox in the highest gear available when un-doing the pulley bolt. Using 1st gear just makes it easier to overcome the handbrake. I hope she is running smoothly now. 😊👍
that's because Ford manufactured their own harmonic balancer, and designed it so you have to use a specific tool to remove it and is no good for any other makes of car and used an inferior bonding material, when there are other options they could have chosen that are much better quality and can use a standard remover on it instead of going through hell, thanks Ford
Owned like 10 ecotec commodores, took a bunch of those if not most to their grave, never needed a new balancer, never needed a 300 buck puller to get the dog off, bought one au Falcon and within 5 months owning it the balancer let go. Fact is, the falcons block and heads are good, the rest is crap. Don’t get me wrong I love my au, but overall the build quality of a commodore is noticeably better, I don’t get into that brand loyalty smooth brain shit, they each have their ups and downs, straight 6 ford motors are unreal, v6 Buick/ecotecs are great too, but fords seem like they can take more abuse for sure. But fords will always rust quicker, the plastics/rubbers through the whole car are of a lower quality. Those aren’t opinions, just well known facts. Both falcons and commodores are in their own league when compared to 99% of other vehicles though, as far as rwd 6 cyl full size cars go, give me either I’m a happy man.
Just wait until you have to get the heater core done. I had to get mine done last month at the cost of $780 as you can’t do it yourself as the air con needs to be regassed.
haha, yours was an easy job, I bought the tool, it bent on trying to remove the balancer, had to keep hammering the tool back into shape reusing with wood wedges hammered in behind tightening the tool a little at a time and bashing the harmonic, repeated this about 20 times before coming off, took all day, luckily I have a new balancer because the old one is damaged from hitting it with a hammer all day
It is absolutely impossible for a harmonic balancer ring to depart from the rest of the engine! Until it does... The powerbond replacement is great, I wouldn't trust anything else
Haha classic video as usual, good on ya mate. I put an under drive kit in mine and if it wasnt for my mate bringing some tools from his work. There was no way jason was getting that harmomic balancer off. Haha
Awsome video thx yes it wins and no wins with cars cant wait to hear ur exhaust love venom systems on boosted barras i have 3 inch tips on my n/a ghia so know them feeels but mine titanium tips on acid rush which i personally think looks amazing
Never apologise. If you work on cars this always happens. I dropped an engine off a crane and caved in the sump so badly it crushed the oil pump. Terry for the big win!
That`s a nice tutorial!!! I`ll double check my balancer. I`ve just bought two pulleys Idle and tensioner`s after your last video, but it seems to me this job is a must too. Because the car is shaking enormously while idling. However, there is a major pity- my car is automatic one... Is there any idea how to remove it in this case, or it needs really special tools and equipment not displayed in your video? Thank you
Hi saun, your certainly right if left that balancer basically turns into a grenade in you engine bay and would take out the radiator, condenser, and god knows what els m. This was prone in previous model falcons. I was going to ask if I hardwire a Bluetooth receiver into the tape deck Chanel’s on my au ii forte as you did in your nc fairlane I won’t be dealing with tuning into an fm station and Bluetooth will just work with my tape deck. Just before I pull the bastard apart.
I wasn't able to get a 100% successful bluetooth install on my AU Ghia's head unit. I found an L / R / Ground pins to solder the wires onto, but in the end the bluetooth audio played over the top of the FM radio. So it was only good if you could tune the FM band to a particular frequency which was quiet and with no static. Not great! The Forte would run a different head unit, so you might be up for a bit of trial and error.
@@MotoringBoxTV while thanks anyway. Just on the side you make great videos and I honestly believe that it really does do these great Australian cars justice for what they mean to people who grew up by them. I’m only 16 but have grown up with an old vt Calais and ford territory ghia which still drives great, but the calais got written off. They really are amazing cars with too much character to be forgotten. The au forte was my grandmothers and is like brand new, the dealership warranty just ran out and one of her kids crashed it up the ass of an old truck going into second. And I couldn’t be happier being here trying to get an old Australian car back on the road to drive, look after and keep tidy for many years to come.
I wouldn't normally be this forward, but I've played your drinking game and my inhibitions are out the window. I have a 92 lincoln mark vii and I want to put a barra in it. The problem is I live in the states and am not sure how to go about locating a barra. Would anyone be able to point me in the general direction? Awesome car!!
This might sound silly with locking the engine place it doesn’t move while you turn your socket on the nut to stop the crankshaft from moving Would a rubber expansion plug work any recce store have a good stock of them got quite a few of them as I work in swimming pools
Awesome video I got worried about my Harmonic balancer on my 96 Ute after seeing your last video. I went out to look and it looks good. It must be a BARRA thing I guess
How did you lock your balancer from spinning to tighten im in reverse with the tool to do my timing chain ⛓️ 🤔 balancer is stuck on and just keeps rotating with the ford puller. Any advice? Cheers
Update removed the balancer it broke apart, then used a crow bar to wedge the rest off slowly it came off okay now, giving me access to timing. My chain rattles and lost tension, hence the new timing kit, and some ins an outs. Cheers man so far down to the case where I wanted to be a week ago, now wait for new balancer and put the new kit in next few days and yes I have pre set the timing to just swap over the kit and clean up n put back case n new seals etc part of no return 😀. Cheers again. Quick Q: How does the performance harmonic balancer maybe kit upgrade performance any difrence...? Enjoy that Torque! 💚🙌✨️🦅
Hey Shaun, has the harmonic balancer outer ring stayed flush with the inner? I'm about to replace mine again for the third time, can't figure out why it's happening.
@@MotoringBoxTV Haven't taken it off yet, still pricing a new one, last time it was replaced by my mechanic, and he did the seal as well, so I would say no, this one wouldn't have oil on it, the car itself only has 138xxx ks on it.
Ha mate , forget the brand , dodge , i got mine for Bursons ,ran 4 months engine idle was rough, replaced tensioner and belt looked like same brand , they had rec call any problems???
Did you get a weight reduced one as well? Good video, I've been contemplating getting that tool and swapping out my under drive pulleys for weight reduced ones.
I'm not sure if going for a lighter one is worth it on a Barra Turbo, they're not that heavy to begin with. Maybe on an N/A perhaps. Similar story for the underdrive pulleys apparently.
@@MotoringBoxTV I've heard some varying claims that a few kW can be had (someone even claimed 9rwkw, but that seems a bit bullshit) by putting the lightweight ones on, and it doesn't effect your auxiliaries in any noticeable way. I'm going to do it regardless, all those little 2%ers add up in the end after a tune.
don't forget to mention the $180 price tag on the pulley remover that is only good for a Barra Harmonic balancer, and you'll probably never use it again, thanks Ford
Just tune it already ! Keen to see the mods and sound improvements. Have you got a list on what you want the shop to do ? Elite Auto in Archerfield refused to do mine unless I did the injectors and fuel pump as they would have been running close to dangerous. Just a heads up.
Whatever shop I decide on will be doing the valve springs and the tune. Maybe the injectors too if I can't get the car drivable with the upgraded ones I have here.
Might not be needed anymore being a few months down the track. But just in case... Attach a breaker bar, or a pipe over a normal wrench, to the socket. Place socket on balancer bolt and thread end of breaker bar UNDER the DRIVERS chassis rail. Preferable to ensure the balancer bolt is in such position that the breaker bar is as close as possible to the underside of the chassis rail. Then give the starter a quick flick on and off, FFS DO NOT START THE CAR!!! You will hear the bar smack the underside of the rail and the bolt will be loose. Works great and works every time!
Dumb question, but what's the difference between the Barra-specific $200 harmonic balancer removal tool vs one of the cheap-ass $40 universal harmonic balancer removal tools from somewhere like Repco or Supercheap? Are the cheap universal ones that bad? Or are the Barra-specific tools that good? (both?)
@@MotoringBoxTV yeah I've done this job 3 times now. It's a bit of a pain. If you hadn't of just changed the radiator out I would say do that and use bigger tools. Makes it much easier. If I had of known you were doing this job I would have just sent you my balancer tool. Let's face it it's one of those tools you bust out once in a blue moon, I wouldn't have exactly missed it.
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The production value never ceases to amaze me. Good on you calling out old mate 😂
The thing I love about Commodores and Falcons, is that if you've got a problem it's always the same things that fuck up on em. Yes they had their faults, but at least they were the usual common faults. If you have a problem, chances are at least 50 people on a forum have had the same one.
...And also Sean don't feel deflated by the last vid, not at all crap content. We're all human and don't always do things right the first time. I appreciate the fact you were upfront about it and didn't just hide it into a single video. These days in the Instagram perfect world, it's good to see things not going to plan!! Cheers
Everything I've faced so far are common issues, and luckily the cars are old enough that they were around in the golden age of forums. I don't know what we'd do without all those archive posts.
@@MotoringBoxTVforums, thats one reason I love owning "older" (cough cough better) cars haha , gotta love forums if youre a DIY mechanic
God I love this channel. It’s like I’m talking with an old mate. There in the moment. Cheers.
This comment is bang on. He comes across as the type of bloke you could have a beer with even if you have never met him before. Definitely a goal when Covid stops screwing things up.
Don’t apologise for making good content. Your step by step guides have been flawless and if anything seeing you tackle another problem first hand while you were trying to fix another is exactly what happens in the automotive Industry. So showing us Initiative and speedy recovery’s are necessary here which made you provide more valuable content then you seem to realise in said video ✌🏼
MotoringBox drinking game: Take a shot every time I say Harmonic Balancer 👌
You would be passed out
I didn't know until the other day, but Mitsubishi invented another piece of tech for NVH in the 'balance shaft'.
Depending on what we drinking
With the Auto box have used the crossmember a piece of solid wood a wooden wedge and an old drive belt in the grooves , smack the wedge with a short handled hammer to lock it . Have used the 22mm socket 3/8 is lower profile with a lump of 4x2 on the end of the ratchet handle shocked it with a short handled 4 lb er. The three finger 75 mm model bearing puller (3 spokes on the balancer) if the bolt is too long cut it and repoint it . Drilled a small spud hole in the balancer bolt to ctr the puller if any further removals were reqd. A 14 mm 9/16" ratchet head spanner works a treat . As you did :- A piece of cardboard or 3 ply on the radiator saves leaving your name and address all over the radiator with the tools . Thanks for the Video .
She's almost ready for the National BA Series Ford Meetup.
Don’t ever feel guilty of your content bro it’s always top-notch. 👌🏼
For those wondering how to break the initial hold of the balancer bolt on an auto, or an easier method on a manual, here is the awesome backyarders method.
Attach a breaker bar, or a pipe over a normal wrench, to the socket. Place socket on balancer bolt and thread end of breaker bar UNDER the DRIVERS chassis rail. Preferable to ensure the balancer bolt is in such position that the breaker bar is as close as possible to the underside of the chassis rail. Then give the starter a quick flick on and off, FFS DO NOT START THE CAR!!! You will hear the bar smack the underside of the rail and the bolt will be loose. Works great and works every time!
I haven't had to do a balancer on an A or B series, but I believe it should be possible to replace one of the torque converter to flywheel bolts with a long version that pokes outside of the access hole. You could turn the engine until the bolt impacts the edge of the hole and use that to stop the crank turning. Probably safest to put a piece of wood between the bolt and alloy to ensure it doesn't get damaged. Pretty sure the bolt is M12 x 1.25
Sean, I think you earned yourself a KFC snackbox for your work mate!
Don't feel bad about the last video you did. Not everything always goes to plan & it's not always a quick 10min fix with fancy editing. One of the things that put me off the motoring shows on Discovery Turbo was the fake drama & the tacky scripted acting to try & make the program more interesting. Warts & all is what people want as well as fun moments. In the end when you take the XR6T out on the road, we want to see that smile on your dial & it'll show that you achieved something you would never had attempted years ago.
Holdens & Fords each have their own foibles. I've had horror stories with my Holden Ute & everyone has a story or two. My latest one involves a VU SS ute that belongs to a guy I know that a mate of mine & myself have been working on. We changed the front end to a V2 Monaro with a V2 Monaro bonnet, we changed the sailplane to a HSV Maloo one & had to cut into the hardlid to make it fit perfectly. Just recently the owner bought a fibreglass faux HSV Maloo rear bar & side skirts. Anyone will tell you that fibreglass body kits don't always fit perfectly & the rear bar during the manufacturing process was curved in the middle. After a bit of thought, we got a bit of metal hollow square tube & fibreglassed it in to get it straight and it's worked. It's currently being painted at the moment & will be ready to install on Saturday.
I've done the "placing the breaker bar and turning your engine with key for a milli second" to crack the harmonic balancer bolt a few times with great success , works first time like a treat haha
Youve done it again Shaun well spoken and videod you make it look easy its probably your on camera patience.
Tony
Job well done...again, it's great to see someone taking us step by step through what they do...worth being a subscriber:
Great to see the old ippy spirit and good on DF for providing material😁
As always enjoy seeing these videos pop up on my feed instant click
That was an excellent explanation of a harmonic balancer and it's construction. I always thought it was just the one piece but now know better.
Hi mate. Just found your channel. It’s very good. Love my falcons. I have learnt so much from you. Definitely keep up the great work. Cheers
An excellent result! And a timely reminder, so I just went out and checked my harmonic balancer. It's OK: pulley and spoke boss are flush at the rubber ring joint. The belt on my Barra over the water pump pulley is sitting in the same position as your does in the video. You can hide the frayed edge of your belt by re-installing the other way around, so the frayed edge faces the engine!
Interesting thing I learned from a fella I did work experience with, an LS1 balancer puller fits perfectly on a barra balancer
Nice, I wonder how they compare price wise.
Crikey, don't apologise mate. Your content is always top notch. Glad you achieved harmony in this ep.
I think I might have the same issues on my FG! Now I know how to fix this! Cheers mate!
Awesome content, mate. Really looking forward to seeing this one finished! We need more clean falcons on the road. There arent's as many left as there were, and that trend will only continue
man I liked the cliffhanger episode.
Nothing is ever straightforward. I Had a MightyBoy and took me weeks to get shit done on it. But when it was figured out it was worth the hassles.
Good shit as always Sean. 👍🏽
Such a small car, you'd expect jobs would be quick and easy haha
Just discovered and joined your channel. Good to see someone passionate about our two Aussie legends, the Falcon and Commodore. Came across your channel via HubNut as you helped him get his AU Fairmont (Ugly Betty) from the shaky isles to old Blighty
Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks mate , I’m checking my BF tomorrow morning ..
Great video mate, I'm due to do the same thing on my AU Tradesmen ute. That main seal has always slow leaked on my ute since the day I got it, not enough that it's a problem but enough that it's clucking annoying. New seal and sealant stops it for a while but it always comes back to haunt me in the end. Although that pulley is expensive (think I paid about $150 for mine back in the day) it's worth every cent. I appreciate the knowledge and passion you have for these cars and grateful that you share it with us. Anybody who thinks that a part is "impossible to break/come apart" has clearly never owned a AU/BA Falcon.👍
My BA Fairlane is leaking oil from the crankshaft seal, lucky my mechanic will be replacing that and the harmonic balancer in one go. Not bad of a 20.5 year old car and just over 202,000 kms 👍🏻 love your videos ❤
'My harmonic balancer is cooked' hahahahaha made my night - legend
I love watching your vids haha it’s like a tv show that i sit down and wait for it to come on
Cheers!
Folks never change a balancer without fitting a Genuine or at least good quality new cover seal.Oil is the enemy to the rubber encased balancer and silicone is a band aid at best.Put a smear of grease on the balancer bolt flange and thread, it will help in getting a perfect torque setting.Finally never bounce on a tension wrench as this guy did.Keep your arm at right angles to the wrench and pull it towards yourself. Finesse is needed on these sorts of jobs. For the record i'm a Motor Mechanic for over 30 years and specialize in high performance Fords. Cheers
Great vid, as usual.
Had to take the harmonic balancer off the AU about 2 weeks ago. Being a tight arse, I wasn't about to buy the puller. Ended up making my own. Worked a treat.
I saw that, you did very well mate.
Ef falcon, removed the whole front and ratchet strapped the harmonic balancer to a pole, worked a treat.
LMFAO at the armchair experts claiming harmonic balancers can't separate! Of course they don't come "off", the rubber that holds the two steel pieces (the pulley and the center) perishes over time and separates allowing the pulley piece to "escape" leaving the center piece still firmly bolted to the crank. I've had one separate on me with catastrophic consequences for the fan and fan shroud. I was young and ignorant at the time and should not have ignored the disturbing shrieking noises and burnt rubber smells emanating from the front of the engine. Harmonic balancers are definitely wear items that should be inspected and replaced if there is any sign of the rubber deteriorating. Do NOT put silicone on the front main seal! Not sure what idiot recommended that, it won't work at all. Replace it if it is leaking. I've never done a Barra, but on most engines it's a very easy job and the seal is usually very inexpensive.
I've never paid attention to them before, but knowing what I do now it is pretty easy to check for issues without even pulling the thermofans. It's always interesting hearing conflicting information too. Some say put a bit of silicon sealant in the keyway of the balancer to stop oil getting through. But I suppose if the seal is doing its job, you wouldn't need that second layer of defence.
@@MotoringBoxTV and Matthew, when i did my engine, the silicon on the keyway was something i read to do too, might have been in my ellery's manual, but it did have a dollop of silicon already on the balancer keyway when i pulled it off, i didnt bother reapplying...
@@MotoringBoxTV clean the bore of the balancer and the snout of the crank, then put a thin smear of silicone on the nose of the crank and around the keyway and another thin smear around the bore of the balancer, but keep it away from the front main seal and the outside sealing surface of the balancer.
Put the tiniest thin smear of fresh engine oil around the outside sealing surface of the balancer to help stop it snagging the seal on the way back in.
Not the worst idea to use a new crank bolt too, since it's now been on and off a couple of times. - actual qualified mechanic.
Don't use a sea lion either!
@@jamesfrench7299 Or a bald pop star.
Thanks for a great video Shaun .
Had the exact same problem about a month ago on my 04 xr6t, opened the bonnet and rubber from the belt was everywhere. Just caught it at the right time. Great video mate keep it up and stuff old mate 🤣.
Good save.
Great to see it's working for you now mate! Good job. :-)
Finally!
Vibration damper is the correct name.
Because that is what it does. It dampens vibrations.
Good videos, mate. I’m enjoying them. Looking forward to seeing more.
During my 60 years I have picked up a couple of frayed edges....still try for redline though...good job video as always.
Nice work. Looking forward to the next one.
Job well done, Mate 👍🏼
In a workshop we use stubby rattle guns to get the balancer off engines with tight spaces between them and the radiator. Same thing with some Subarus
another great EP - well done
I got FG and the belt was a slight out from the water pump .This one helped me a lot to get some ideas what can be the problems.
Another great video mate. When you do the turbo oil feed line remove the airbox and get at it from the top, I've done two and believe me it's much easier than doing it from under the car. You're going to need a deep style socket, 24 mm from memory.
You're also goin to need some internal circlip pliars, a small pair as the circlip is tiny.
great video very helpful thanks for posting
Never seen my name in credits before until this video… Come on guys, support these channels so they can keep pumping out this primo content!
Thanks for your support mate!
Glad you got it sorted buddy
Cheers!
👍🏽 Well Done.
My LS3 has a balancer wobble, so not looking forward to replacing it
Hopefully there's enough access space to get to it without pulling the rad. Good luck mate.
Good result.
Great work mate
good pick up on the issue/diagnostic
Nice result👍 I would probably grab another new belt too though 😏
Speaking of jobs that turned into nightmares. I took the factory inline turbo oil feed filter out to remove the mesh filter inside, but when i put it back on i snapped it off (it was nowhere near tight). The thickness of it is super thin. A new one cost me $175. I was lucky to get the snapped threads out of the first fitting that threads into the block.
Yikes, I'll have to be careful with mine then.
Helped my mate do his balancer on his fg turbo.His was actually broken, so when we undid the bolt it literally fell off.The front seal was almost gone from the balancer flogging it to death.
Wow, that one was well overdue then! haha
High rpm will cause the balancer to move out of place real fast due to centrifugal force.
@@MotoringBoxTV His made 410rwkw lol.We ended up putting a rated balancer back on,not a standard.
I tackled my wheel bearing today in my BA ute. Turns out I replaced the wrong bearing, I was supposed to do the passenger side. I replaced the drivers.. last time I turn spanners on 2 hours sleep.
But good video, and don’t feel bad. Things never go right first time around for a lot of people
Oh that would have sucked!! If it makes you feel any better, people usually say to replace both sides at once, as the other side is usually not far off failing too.
Hi yea I have had one come off today on my vct motor
Yeah egg on face for old mate reckoning the balancer can’t move etc. they’re normally rubber bonded and can definitely separate.
Congrats. Harmonic balancers definitely fail. I believe one reason they fail is that the rubber can can become contaminated by leaking oil. If you think about the vibration and stresses they are subjected to, it's not surprising they come apart after a while. That's why they sell new ones. Also, best to put the gearbox in the highest gear available when un-doing the pulley bolt. Using 1st gear just makes it easier to overcome the handbrake. I hope she is running smoothly now. 😊👍
that's because Ford manufactured their own harmonic balancer, and designed it so you have to use a specific tool to remove it and is no good for any other makes of car and used an inferior bonding material, when there are other options they could have chosen that are much better quality and can use a standard remover on it instead of going through hell, thanks Ford
Owned like 10 ecotec commodores, took a bunch of those if not most to their grave, never needed a new balancer, never needed a 300 buck puller to get the dog off, bought one au Falcon and within 5 months owning it the balancer let go.
Fact is, the falcons block and heads are good, the rest is crap.
Don’t get me wrong I love my au, but overall the build quality of a commodore is noticeably better, I don’t get into that brand loyalty smooth brain shit, they each have their ups and downs, straight 6 ford motors are unreal, v6 Buick/ecotecs are great too, but fords seem like they can take more abuse for sure.
But fords will always rust quicker, the plastics/rubbers through the whole car are of a lower quality. Those aren’t opinions, just well known facts.
Both falcons and commodores are in their own league when compared to 99% of other vehicles though, as far as rwd 6 cyl full size cars go, give me either I’m a happy man.
Just wait until you have to get the heater core done. I had to get mine done last month at the cost of $780 as you can’t do it yourself as the air con needs to be regassed.
haha, yours was an easy job, I bought the tool, it bent on trying to remove the balancer, had to keep hammering the tool back into shape reusing with wood wedges hammered in behind tightening the tool a little at a time and bashing the harmonic, repeated this about 20 times before coming off, took all day, luckily I have a new balancer because the old one is damaged from hitting it with a hammer all day
Hey there. Thanks for the video. What's the socket size for the bolt that holds the balancer on?
oooh gotta be a few comments on inproper use of a torque wrench, steady force up until the click, jerking motion not recommended
Yup, not ideal. But for the amount of force I had to put onto it, and the awkward angle, it was either bounce it or not torque it up enough.
Definitely do the braided turbo oil line, I didn't do it soon enough and my 3582 said goodnight.
Already done!
It is absolutely impossible for a harmonic balancer ring to depart from the rest of the engine! Until it does...
The powerbond replacement is great, I wouldn't trust anything else
Haha classic video as usual, good on ya mate. I put an under drive kit in mine and if it wasnt for my mate bringing some tools from his work. There was no way jason was getting that harmomic balancer off. Haha
Awsome video thx yes it wins and no wins with cars cant wait to hear ur exhaust love venom systems on boosted barras i have 3 inch tips on my n/a ghia so know them feeels but mine titanium tips on acid rush which i personally think looks amazing
Never apologise. If you work on cars this always happens. I dropped an engine off a crane and caved in the sump so badly it crushed the oil pump. Terry for the big win!
Ouch!!
That`s a nice tutorial!!! I`ll double check my balancer. I`ve just bought two pulleys Idle and tensioner`s after your last video, but it seems to me this job is a must too. Because the car is shaking enormously while idling. However, there is a major pity- my car is automatic one... Is there any idea how to remove it in this case, or it needs really special tools and equipment not displayed in your video? Thank you
Hi saun, your certainly right if left that balancer basically turns into a grenade in you engine bay and would take out the radiator, condenser, and god knows what els m. This was prone in previous model falcons. I was going to ask if I hardwire a Bluetooth receiver into the tape deck Chanel’s on my au ii forte as you did in your nc fairlane I won’t be dealing with tuning into an fm station and Bluetooth will just work with my tape deck. Just before I pull the bastard apart.
I wasn't able to get a 100% successful bluetooth install on my AU Ghia's head unit. I found an L / R / Ground pins to solder the wires onto, but in the end the bluetooth audio played over the top of the FM radio. So it was only good if you could tune the FM band to a particular frequency which was quiet and with no static. Not great! The Forte would run a different head unit, so you might be up for a bit of trial and error.
@@MotoringBoxTV while thanks anyway. Just on the side you make great videos and I honestly believe that it really does do these great Australian cars justice for what they mean to people who grew up by them. I’m only 16 but have grown up with an old vt Calais and ford territory ghia which still drives great, but the calais got written off. They really are amazing cars with too much character to be forgotten. The au forte was my grandmothers and is like brand new, the dealership warranty just ran out and one of her kids crashed it up the ass of an old truck going into second. And I couldn’t be happier being here trying to get an old Australian car back on the road to drive, look after and keep tidy for many years to come.
So Richard Cranium it is ..
got the same problem with my AU2 Ute ...............I think my balancer has 3 threaded holes for a standard type puller .......I hope
I wouldn't normally be this forward, but I've played your drinking game and my inhibitions are out the window. I have a 92 lincoln mark vii and I want to put a barra in it. The problem is I live in the states and am not sure how to go about locating a barra. Would anyone be able to point me in the general direction?
Awesome car!!
This might sound silly with locking the engine place it doesn’t move while you turn your socket on the nut to stop the crankshaft from moving
Would a rubber expansion plug work any recce store have a good stock of them got quite a few of them as I work in swimming pools
What didn’t help your old balancer was the leaking crankshaft seal
True.
Awesome video
I got worried about my Harmonic balancer on my 96 Ute after seeing your last video. I went out to look and it looks good. It must be a BARRA thing I guess
So long as the balancer doesn't wobble visually as it spins and the belt is all lined up it should be all good 👍
@@MotoringBoxTV oh ok thank you
How did you lock your balancer from spinning to tighten im in reverse with the tool to do my timing chain ⛓️ 🤔 balancer is stuck on and just keeps rotating with the ford puller. Any advice? Cheers
Update removed the balancer it broke apart, then used a crow bar to wedge the rest off slowly it came off okay now, giving me access to timing. My chain rattles and lost tension, hence the new timing kit, and some ins an outs. Cheers man so far down to the case where I wanted to be a week ago, now wait for new balancer and put the new kit in next few days and yes I have pre set the timing to just swap over the kit and clean up n put back case n new seals etc part of no return 😀. Cheers again. Quick Q: How does the performance harmonic balancer maybe kit upgrade performance any difrence...? Enjoy that Torque! 💚🙌✨️🦅
For an auto, I had to pull the radiator and use a rattle gun to undo the 22mm bolt .
Curiosity where did you get that removal tool to get the balancer out? Not looking to buy a whole kit ect
Good job🤟 bud I'm gunna check out my pulleys and harmonic balancer on my xr6 turbo also👍
Whats the tool your using to pull it off
Smooth as fcuk mate, great work…
Hey Shaun, has the harmonic balancer outer ring stayed flush with the inner? I'm about to replace mine again for the third time, can't figure out why it's happening.
Mine still looks perfect, did yours have any oil on it?
@@MotoringBoxTV Haven't taken it off yet, still pricing a new one, last time it was replaced by my mechanic, and he did the seal as well, so I would say no, this one wouldn't have oil on it, the car itself only has 138xxx ks on it.
Will this make the car vibrate under load if the harmonic balance is on it way
Can do.
Just wondering who are you thinking of going to, to get it tuned?
Is it possible to remove the balancer without the tool as i can't see the point myself to buying one for just the one use.?
Not sure how you would, they're jammed on there pretty good.
Ha mate , forget the brand , dodge , i got mine for Bursons ,ran 4 months engine idle was rough, replaced tensioner and belt looked like same brand , they had rec call any problems???
Did you get a weight reduced one as well? Good video, I've been contemplating getting that tool and swapping out my under drive pulleys for weight reduced ones.
I'm not sure if going for a lighter one is worth it on a Barra Turbo, they're not that heavy to begin with. Maybe on an N/A perhaps. Similar story for the underdrive pulleys apparently.
@@MotoringBoxTV I've heard some varying claims that a few kW can be had (someone even claimed 9rwkw, but that seems a bit bullshit) by putting the lightweight ones on, and it doesn't effect your auxiliaries in any noticeable way.
I'm going to do it regardless, all those little 2%ers add up in the end after a tune.
don't forget to mention the $180 price tag on the pulley remover that is only good for a Barra Harmonic balancer, and you'll probably never use it again, thanks Ford
Just tune it already ! Keen to see the mods and sound improvements. Have you got a list on what you want the shop to do ? Elite Auto in Archerfield refused to do mine unless I did the injectors and fuel pump as they would have been running close to dangerous. Just a heads up.
Whatever shop I decide on will be doing the valve springs and the tune. Maybe the injectors too if I can't get the car drivable with the upgraded ones I have here.
@@MotoringBoxTV Sounds good (I bet it will).. get them to test the pump too. BA spaghetti rods don't like being under fueled
How would you go about removing the harmonic balancer on a auto xr6? How do you stop the harmonic balancer from moving?
Might not be needed anymore being a few months down the track. But just in case...
Attach a breaker bar, or a pipe over a normal wrench, to the socket. Place socket on balancer bolt and thread end of breaker bar UNDER the DRIVERS chassis rail. Preferable to ensure the balancer bolt is in such position that the breaker bar is as close as possible to the underside of the chassis rail. Then give the starter a quick flick on and off, FFS DO NOT START THE CAR!!! You will hear the bar smack the underside of the rail and the bolt will be loose. Works great and works every time!
R/T Chargers 265s like to throw the harmonic balancer off😯
Dumb question, but what's the difference between the Barra-specific $200 harmonic balancer removal tool vs one of the cheap-ass $40 universal harmonic balancer removal tools from somewhere like Repco or Supercheap? Are the cheap universal ones that bad? Or are the Barra-specific tools that good? (both?)
I imagine the barra-specific one is probably easier to use and needs less space between it and the rad to get in there.
What puller is being used?
Check the link in the video description
you can pull it off with a big prybar behind it and bumping the motor over
At least you have a VERY expensive tool for removing the balancer.
Yup. I guess I'll have to think of some other inventive things I could use it for 😂
Is the harmonic removal tool needed?
Yup
@@MotoringBoxTV thanks. Did you need to replace the crank pulley bolt? I’ve been told I need to and that they need to be super tight
Yea the bois
👌
My dude you should invest is some ratcheting spanners. Worth it for every annoying situation like these.
Oh and when you replace the front main seal make sure you also put sealant on the keyway or it will leak through that aswell
I have a set, but sadly not up to 22mm. Also needed quite a lot of leverage for this job, maybe more than a spanner could handle!
@@MotoringBoxTV yeah I've done this job 3 times now. It's a bit of a pain. If you hadn't of just changed the radiator out I would say do that and use bigger tools. Makes it much easier. If I had of known you were doing this job I would have just sent you my balancer tool. Let's face it it's one of those tools you bust out once in a blue moon, I wouldn't have exactly missed it.
@@Matwe69 they should be on a donation system for all Ford fans. Whenever someone needs one, you send it to them, and vice versa 😂