Kinda stupid serpentine setup question...

I just purchased an entire serpentine belt setup with A/C compressor, power steering pump, smog pump, reverse water pump, and all pulleys, brackets, etc.

I don't want to install all of it.

I DO want to install water pump, crank pulley, A/C compressor (won's use it for a while, but may as well set it up now), alternator. That is about it.

I would rather NOT have smog-pump delete and power steering delete pulleys.

So how hard would it be to just skip those two items and buy a shorter belt and just run what I need? Has anyone done it, and what should I look into buying?

Also, I may as well upgrade to a correct later model alternator, since mine is only cranking 64 amps or thereabouts. What model alternator would fit right in and give me closer to 100 amps?

 

Here is what I have...

 

can just ditch the smog pump and run a shorter belt. you will need to get the tightest belt you can find or the tentioner will push the belt into it self. there are kits to ditch the ac. i have not seen one for the power stearing. i suspect that you can just leave the power stearing pump off. you may have to put a spacer sleave from the plate to the block on the bolt that the pump was on.

 

Have you looked on any of the 5.0L forums??

 

No, I guess I could.

I don't mind leaving the a/c compressor on because one day I plan on adding a/c to the car, and I may as well set it up for it now.

I am pretty sure I have seen P/S delete pulleys. I guess one delete pulley shouldn't hurt. I just didn't want to end up with 2 or 3 pulleys serving no purpose, just spinning around all over my engine bay eventually wearing out bearings and squealing.

 

Scott,is your setup going to require an idler pully and bracket?

 

Not sure at this point. I am trying to set it up with as little as I possibly need. Plus the A/C compressor, since I would eventually NEED to add it, living in SE Texas.

 

Hate to say it but you'll need a pulley where the P/S pump is. Without it you will not have enough belt on the W/P pulley to properly drive it and will likely have cooling issues. I could be wrong depending on how the belt is routed but is it worth chancing it?

 

I have that set up on my car with no p/s idler or pump for 4 years. No cooling issues or belt slippage. Randy has a pic of my setup (rando76).

 

the belt goes from the crank pully to the water pump to the alt. the p/s pump wont effect the water pumps belt contact area.

 

From what I read about serpentines, you will want the idler pulley ... the tensioner takes out harmonics in the belt ... a large reason why serpentines are better than V-belts in the first place.

I had a Suzuki Sidekick ... it had odd belts in it, three ribs IIRC ... two belts, too ... no tensioner. You had to pull the accessories to what seemed like impossibly tight to keep them from slipping. I don't know how you would get it done with a much bigger belt and no tensioner.

 

So the general consensus is to ditch the smog pump and p/s pump, and run a shorter belt?

 

Makes sense, I thought it might go the other direction. Even then the more I look at it there would be enough belt contact.

 

Look at some of the different configs offered by March Performance. You might find some ideas there.

 

it has a tentioner pully. its between the alt and a/c. on my fox mustang i didnt have the smog pump or the ac. i use the ford motor sport ac eliminator kit. it moves the power stearing pump up. it doesnt go up as far as the ac pully was, and that caused the belt going to and from the alt to be really close to each other where the tentioner pully was pusing. i had to use the tightest belt that i could find to keep them from touching. i suspect with the ac compressor being higher this wont be as much of a problem.