Belt tensioner stud snapped

1/2 a mile from my house on the way to work this morning, and there was a clunk a whir and my power steering packed in and the alternator stopped charging.

Nursed it home to find the aux belt tensioner lying in the engine bay, and the fastening stud sheared off.

Is this a common problem?

I'll have to drill the stud and hope an easy out will shift it.

Face palm.

Had you used the 'penny trick' on it, I'm a bit suspicious about this practice as it will place a bending force on the stud rather than having it in tension when torqued up. Read about other ones being stripped out of the casing and being helicoiled (if worst comes to worst)

I did use the penny trick at first which didn't work, so I bought a new tensioner. And then the p gasket went twice so I changed the front housing, it could be any combination of issues, even metal fatigue from repeated undoing for repairing things. Possible over tightening may be a factor, I can't remember if I nipped it or used the torque wrench.

Found my spare stud off the old housing, just got to get the stump out of the hole now.

Helecoiled and will hopefully get it back together over the weekend.

I agree with Kwakerman that penny lark sounds dodgy, if the bolt is flexing eventually its going to snap.
Steve

To be fair, I torqued the stud properly this time and I was surprised how tight it was, not just the nip I have done in the past, maybe that was the issue.

kes86 said:

To be fair, I torqued the stud properly this time and I was surprised how tight it was, not just the nip I have done in the past, maybe that was the issue.

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agreed, mine went not long ago after a similar sequence of events: replaced alty, then water pump, then off again for new PS pump, did penny trick month or so later snapped stud.

I cleaned out the old threaded hole found bits of helicoil in there tried new stud without tensioner on found i could wind it quite a bit further in than when the tensioner was hanging off the end of it, torqued it up and touch wood its been good for a while now.