Hello,
so I need to replace my serpentine belt tensioner while I am deleting a/c & changing the belt on my 4gsr (original engine). I did quite a bit of research before ordering the parts and I settled on the "Gates Alternator Tensioner Pulley for Evo 7/8/9 (38413)" as multiple places said it would fit the 456. I tried to install it, it's possible to get the 2 bolts to line up, but the pulley is then roughly 2 inches further to the right / exhaust side of the engine. I believe I can get it to bolt on but I'm not sure if it will cause the belt to be tighter than it should be and if that may cause any issues. I would have just ordered the genuine Mitsubishi part but it was 3-4x the price with shipping. Can anybody confirm if this will fit without issues or if I am better off returning it and taking the hit on the genuine OEM part? Thank you!

 

If you are just worried about the belt being too tight and don't have any other issues with wrap angle and what not, you could always just get a shorter belt.
I have done that on a few cars where AC was deleted lol.

If you go that route, measure with a string to get the length, hit up your local auto parts store; I prefer NAPA for stuff like this, and find something thats the right width at the shorter length.

 

Sorry I think you misunderstood. I have the correct Non A/C belt. It's the Gates Serpentine Belt Tensioner that I was hoping to verify will fit the evo 4 engine without any issues. It will bolt on fine but then the actual pulley of the tensioner sits roughly 2 inches further to the right than the old oem that is junk. Thanks for the reply, much appreciated

 

No, I understood the question.

I don't have a clue about the Evo 4 and the gates tensioner but was rather offering an alternative to make what you have work assuming the idler on the tensioner is in line with the rest of the pulleys. So basically, my suggestion was an even shorter belt.

 

Oh ok I see, I will look into the shorter belt. Thank you for the great suggestion!

 

No problem. Making something work on cars what you can't get parts for is kind of a pain so sometimes you just have to make something work lol. Like I said, I have done this before on cars with bad AC compressors lol.

 

Were you able to sort this out? I've been told the tensioner fits the block, but doesnt clear the frame rails??