Idler pulley (torque spec) & Clutch fan delete (what's the purpose)

[Carnage44]

Guys I need your input. But first let me give you some backstory: I heard some squealing noise coming from under the hood of my 2009 Ram 1500 Big Horn 5.7 Hemi. I pinpointed it to the idler pulley. Which I replaced and I replaced the serpentine belt while I was there. In doing so this fixed the noise. I looked for torque specs for the bolt that holds the idler pulley on. I found somebody mentioned 45 ft. lbs. for this bolt. So I set my torque wrench to 45, placed it on the bolt and waiting for the clicks. Well I snap the head of the bolt off. TALK ABOUT BEING PISSED! This is where I would like your input. Should I have it towed to a shop and let them extract the bolt out? Or, is it something I should tackle? And if I do it should I just go ahead and do a clutch fan delete, 180 t-stat, V6 E-fan and tune?

Here is what I (we) need to know:
(and I hope this post helps other people so they don't do what I did)

1) What is the correct torque spec for the idler pulley?
2) What is the purpose of the clutch fan delete? And is it worth it?
3) What does it take to extract the bolt out? Do I have to remove the fan and fan shroud or can I do it without removing anything besides the pulley & belt? (I have never extracted out a bolt. Nothing YouTube can't fix)

Sorry I feel like I'm all over the place with this post. Definitely two different subjects haha. Thanks in advance

 

[crackerjack1957]

1) What is the correct torque spec for the idler pulley? (30 Ft. Lbs.)
2) What is the purpose of the clutch fan delete? And is it worth it? (Faster warm ups, less wear on water pump, very slight HP increase)
3) What does it take to tap the bolt out? Do I have to remove the fan and fan shroud or can I do it without removing anything besides the pulley & belt? (I have never tapped out a bolt. Nothing YouTube can't fix) (Sometimes you can back out with center punch & hammer....if not....left hand drill bit.....if that fails you will need a screw extractor)

 

[Carnage44]

Thank you @crackerjack1957 !
I was even thinking about using JB Weld original epoxy and trying that ..??

 

[crackerjack1957]

Thank you @crackerjack1957 !
I was even thinking about using JB Weld original epoxy and trying that ..??

Not sure what you are thinking about by doing this.........is the broken bolt flush or recessed in hole?

 

[Carnage44]

It is barely recessed in the hole.
And what I was thinking was.. If I could adhere the head of the bolt back onto the stem of the bolt and reverse it out of the hole. But IDK if any epoxy would be able to handle the torque. It was just a spit balling idea

 

[crackerjack1957]

It's recessed in the hole

Since you have never attempted to remove a broken bolt/screw and you cannot spin it counter-clockwise by hand or hammer with a pointed punch, I advise you to have somebody else to remove.
You could do more damage by drilling or welding on bolt.

JB Weld in a recessed hole could make the removal of bolt harder than necessary.

 

[Carnage44]

Well you have to start somewhere haha. Before I have it towed to a shop I will be trying a bolt extractor that will fit on a drill.
For example: Alden Grabit Pro
I'll keep you guys updated and will try to get pictures

 

[Carnage44]

 UPDATE: I did have to take off the fan shroud & clutch fan as I did not have enough room in the area to use the extractor bit attached to my impact drill. Which is ok because I'm doing the clutch fan delete mod anyways... So YouTube has always been a great tool for me But it can also get you in trouble, let me explain. I searched " clutch fan delete Dodge ram" on YouTube and there is a great video, with a ton of views, that helps you through removal of the fan & shroud. He shows you this tool he made from a flat bar of metal and two bolts. This flat bar helps to hold the water pump pulley from spinning on you when you start to torque on the nut that the fan is connected to (see screenshot.) Then he goes on and puts his wrench onto the fan nut and hits the wrench with a hammer. It worked for him so I thought it surely it has to work for me. I buy the materials I need to make that metal flat bar tool. My first mistake; I bought some zinc plated machine screws when I knew I should have bought Grade-8 bolts. But I was at home going to give it a go anyways. My second mistake; I was hitting the adjustable wrench with a hammer because, at the time, I didn't have any breaker bars big enough to go around the end of the wrench. So in conclusion; I bent the crap out of those zinc bolts and the downward momentum carried the hammer right into the lip of my power steering pulley busting a piece of it off |: AND NOW THAT NEEDS TO BE REPLACED (see picture)....
I came back to it a couple days later but this time with Grade-8 bolts and a big breaker bar. I finally got the clutch fan & shroud off giving me enough room to extract the bolt that holds the idler pulley on (see pictures.) When I was using the cutting side of the extractor bit the bolt started to back itself out and I didn't have to use the extractor side of the bit, then I just used a pair of vice grips the rest of the way. And after all that I finally got the idler pulley back on but with a new headache. I have had my rig towed to a shop to fix the power steering pump pulley and I need the spots where the running boards mount to be welded anyways. Lessons learned is take your time and make sure to have the correct tools for the job.

I also just added a screenshot picture from Google of the serpentine belt diagram on a 5.7 Hemi for at least a 2009 year model

 

[Lu87]

So what torque did you use on the idler pulley?

 

[Carnage44]

@Lu87 I just went hand tight and then just a touch past that. I seen somewhere that it calls for 21 ft/lbs but @crackerjack1957 wrote on this post above that it takes 30 ft/lbs. I know for a fact that it is NOT 45 ft/lbs haha!