I installed my UDP and had issues with belt noise. I figured I should check the tensioner pulley. It did have play, so I replaced it and the belt that RRM sent with the UDP. I bought a gates belt. It was quiet for about two weeks, then the noise came back again. I did try belt spray for a temporary fix. It works for about a day or so. My questions are: is the gates belt not as good as I thought?, might there be another issue I missed? The AC pulley is in good shape. I have checked to see if everything is in line while the car is running. Thanks in advance!

 

you traded a harmonic balancer for a solid pulley, I could be wrong but I would expect some noise/vibration as a result...UDP's are junk in my opinion.

 

The stock pulley is not a harmonic balancer type. It just has a rubber ring in there. It does not act as a balancer.

Relevant reference from NASIOC forum about Subaru WRX that has our kind of pulley (http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/show...php?t=437237):
"Hello F. Flores:
Thank you for your patience as I checked with our Technical Services
Department regarding your message below. They advised that the crank pulley
is a pulley and nothing else. It is not used as a harmonic damper/balancer.
Thanks for the opportunity to be of assistance. If you need any future
assistance, please feel free to contact us again.
Best wishes,
John J. Mergen
Subaru of America, Inc."

I'm using a UDP that Brent's company made. It gets rid of a fair amount of rotational weight so engine spins up a bit faster, other than that I can't definitively say if it does much else. Hasn't hurt anything though!

Never had belt noise issues, I use a Goodyear gatorback.

Noise would be from belt slipping. Maybe one of the surfaces the pulley runs over has been worn so it doesn't fit the belt profile accurately anymore, thus slipping?

 

I will check this weekend if any of the pulleys look to have worn spots. I had that issue on my old truck, it had rub marks where the belt would slip. Thanks!

 

Well I have since ditched the gates belt and switched to a Acdelco belt with much success. The Squeal is gone and no issues after at least 1,000 miles logged. Did notice it runs smoother, guessing gates belt might have been tad loose even since it was new. Not bashing gates, just saying what fixed my issue.

 

Why not bash Gates? Responsible for carnage due to many prematurely failed timing belts, now it looks like they didn't get the accessory belt right either.