I have a '98/C5. The rubber that separates the harmonic balancer from the flywheel has broken off. So I guess it needs the whole assembly. Is there any altenative? I understand when a blower is put in there's a way to lock the two together. Can the rubber relaced? If indeed the whole balancer needs replacement what should be a fair cost? Is this something I should take it to a dealer for or use a trusted mechanic?
PS: does anyone have the repair instructions for this job?
im sure u need a new balancer. the rubber cant be replaced as its a factory assembly. u will need a balancer remover and a balancer installer. im not sure of your situation on a 98 but you should be able to do it yourself i could be totally wrong but it sounds like a typical balancer on millions of cars.
It's pretty expensive because they have to remove a lot of stuff in front of the balancer to remove the old one and replace it. I'd stick with a mechanic and avoid the dealership... it't not rocket science and any decent mechanic should be able to do it.
Never go to the dealer if you have a mechanic available..my son just took his van into the dealer for the 30,000 mile check up and it cost him $326 for nothing more than a basic $ 13.95 Wal-Mart oil change...the rest of the work was pure bullsh**...paid for shop supplies..check battery,check water,check wipers and on and on but no real work of any kind done...etc..a super rip off....do any of you realize that the person taking you car in for service gets a big commision on any of the repairs that you come in for...???
Might be time for an under drive balancer and new belts. Balancer is not keyed and is not a heavy press although some rust may bind it a bit.
They charged me $675 to replace the harmonic balancer.
They even charged be for an alighnment because they had to remove the steering rod.
That's not going to be any short cuts for me, IMO the Hamonic Balancer still needs to be replaced, then pinned. Then the blower... Right?
Just replaced both belts and a tensioner 4/6/06. Stopped the squeeking for a couple of months but obviously there was more to it.
On my LT-!..( 1993 Vette ) replacement was very simple .... only..3 bolts and you can pry it off..the center hub stays put and the balancer can only be installed one way ..no key and no big deal...removed only a few items ..takes about an hour..at home in the garage..had to do that to replace the optispark..whole job was not very difficult....I replaced the opti hi volts with a Cadillac northstar four coil set up..car runs like new..( a shot of PB Blaster helps if yours is rusted on )
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