Temporary, emergency "fix" of P/S bracket failure on Gen I with A/C & Roe S/C with 8 lb pulley:
The title says it all. Yesterday, IN/KY VCA Members supplied 16 Vipers for a small mall's charity car show to benefit the Ronald McDonald House Program. We had to stage outside of the Mall's doors, then hand push the cars inside (on carpet!!) to the display area. Just as one beautiful Gen I Viper pulled up to the doors, its OEM power steering bracket suffered a total failure, leaving the assembly hanging by the lines. Obviously, the engine would not run (for long) without the serpentine belt being in place ( making me recall the quotation (of Clare Booth Luce???) "No good deed goes unpunished".
We are fortunate in that this group contains several members with "real" mechanical knowledge and ability...old hot rodders, retired Chrysler employees (at least one of whom was with Mopar racing), racers, and a former formula car builder!! While I called good friend and Viper Tech Tom Sessions(who is ALWAYS willing to try to help anyone, anytime, anywhere!!), the owner consulted Sean Roe. We then quickly applied the collective wisdom and planned a "fix".
We needed to secure the power steering assembly to the left and rear to keep it out of harm's way...which was done later with zip ties (wire ties).
We repositioned the serpentine belt over ALL pulleys except the power steering pulley, pulled the belt tight as we could, which then left us with a loop of redundant belt. By pinching this loop at its base, we were able to mark the belt with a felt-tip pen, so that we could measure the soon-to-be excessive length contained in the "loop". With the belt in hand, we hiked a couple of blocks to an AutoZone, where they measured our 7 rib belt at 92.5 inches and our excess from the "loop" at 3.0 inches. We decided to subtract 1/2 inch for measuring error AND another 1/2 inch to allow the tensioner pulley to do its job. Thus, we decided to request a 7 rib belt 88.5 inches in length. They offered two 6 rib belts...one 88.2 inches long and the other 88.7 inches long ( we took both, one of which would be returned later).
I hoped to make things easier by getting out MY specially modified Snap-On tool...made for ME to replace these belts on Gen I and II Vipers alone-in-the-dark. Well, with the metallic smooth tubes in place (and staying there unless we found the correct Allen wrenches), my wrench was way to long. So we dropped back to a shorter 15 mm box wrench (from the Sears in the Mall) to use on the tensioner pulley, chose the 88.2 inch belt...and it fit without binding!!!
After the show, we pushed the Vipers out of the mall, and fired up the Viper in question. All went well. He made the 20 mile trip home without problems, under the watchful eyes of two Viper "wing men"...thus avoiding a ride on a flatbed which would have undoubtedly have damaged the custom spoiler and nose on this highly modified Viper!!!
THANKS FOR THE HELP is owed to all of our Members, Sean Roe, and Tom Sessions (noting that Tom was on the road pulling a trailer containing a new 2009 "Viper Very ORANGE Pearlcoat" ACR...undoubtedly receiving substantial mechanical coaching from the on board owners...CONGRATS on the ACR, Henry and Janni!!!).
For me there are several lessons here:
"Be prepared" !!!
Since OEM power steering brackets on Gen I and II Vipers have been known to fail in some cases (including the plastic pulleys on Gen II's), check YOURS for cracks, and at least consider an aftermarket replacement from our supporting vendors. (I sure will !!! ) In MY opinion, this is mandatory with an increase in power..."built", "sprayed", or "boosted".
Be aware of past history...THANKS to Alan Modzelewski ( "Hoosier Daddy" ) for sharing your "fix" for a broken bracket (alternator or P/S??) somewhere on the road during your 2003 One Lap America Race...Mr. Sessions and I both remembered that one.
Also to Adam Brennan ( "ab" ) for the descriptive account of solving a "pulley-had-died" problem several years back!!!
Share your solutions!!!
The BIG lesson is that you can solve most problems if you have GOOD FRIENDS working together!!!
Viper Nation, YOU are the greatest !!!!
