I have a 1993 taurus 3.2 ltr. engine with no idler or tentioner pulley. how do i get belt loose so i can install alternator.

Have you checked your fan belt?
You can buy a can of belt conditioner which you spray on the belt and it reconditions the belt and lubricates pulleys etc.
Worth a shot, how old is your belt?

using a breaker bar or some other tool w/ 1/2'' drive, insert into idler, there is a square hole, remove belt tension, donot remove belt, but lift belt off say the alternator, it would help if you hang the belt w/ wire or something so as not to let it drop. using a 15mm wrench, remove mounting bolt to idler, remove idler. better to replace the entire ilder w/ pulley, as an assymbly, they wear out like any thing else. when istalling new idler, must be positioned correctly. theres a finger which protrudes out of idler, this must be inserted @ engine sideof idler. reinstall bolt, tighten, reposition belt, using breaker bar 1/2" drive again, remove belt tension, so you can get belt over alternator pulley, release tension , done ! make sure belt is centered, and on properly according to belt rounting. when satisfied w/installation , start engine, check your work, remember to visulize existing idler, etc., etc., before you start this so you can put on the new one on exactly the way the old one was !!!!!!!!!!1

Belts squeak for the same reason tires do when they spin. They are slipping. Something isn't turning as fast as the belt wants it to. On ford it's usually ether the idler sprocket or the tensioner. If you remove the belt and try spinning all of the pulleys by hand.( note the crank wont spin freely) you will usually be able to tell witch ones slipping.

This pulley should be spring loaded and you should have a diagram of the belt path on a label under the hood. There should be a square hole in the casting for a breaker bar or rachet to use as a lever to push or pull the pulley.

One of the secrets to installing the belt is not using the Idler pulley as the last pulley the belt attaches to. You are better off to use a stationary pulley in an easy to reach area as the last pulley to slip the belt over. In some cases you can just lean on the Idler pulley and press it down with the belt already over it. Then use the slack to slip the belt over another pulley, stationary, like the Alternator or water pump pulley.

If in doubt about out or in for the spring, just look at the diagram and see which side of the picture shows the belt looping around it. It (Idler pulley) is always suppose to push against the belt. If the belt runs to the right of the Idler, the spring pushes right. up to up, down to down, left to left. This means you get clearance by pushing the Idler in the opposite direction.

I hope this helps. Thanks for using Fixya.

there is no spring tensioner on some of the 3.0 engines. See instructions below. I will paste a pic on the version that DOES have a tensioner at the bottom of this post.

3.0L Engine-Except SHO
ALTERNATOR BELT WITHOUT AUTOMATIC TENSIONER

1. Loosen the adjusting arm and pivot bolts.
2. Turn the alternator belt adjusting screw counterclockwise until the old belt can be removed.
3. Remove the belt.

To install:

1. Install the new belt over the pulleys. Check that all the V-grooves make proper contact with the pulleys.
2. Adjust the belt tension, then tighten the adjusting arm and pivot bolts.

3.0L SHO Engine
ALTERNATOR BELT
See Figure 2

1. Loosen the nut in the center of the idler pulley.
2. Loosen the idler adjusting screw until the old belt can be removed, then remove the belt.

To install:

1. Install the new belt over the pulleys in proper contact with the pulleys.
2. Adjust the new belt to specifications as follows: Turn the idler pulley nut to the right to tighten the belt to a specification of 220-265 lbs. (980-1180 N). Torque the idler pulley nut to 25-37 ft. lbs. (34-50 Nm).

POWER STEERING AND AIR CONDITIONING BELT
See Figure 2

1. Remove the alternator belt.
2. Loosen the nut on the tensioner pulley.
3. Turn the belt adjusting screw on the tensioner counterclockwise until the belt can be removed, then remove the belt.

To install:

1. Position the new belt over the proper pulleys, making sure the V-grooves are properly seated.
2. Install the alternator belt.
3. Adjust the power steering and air conditioning belt to a specification of 154-198 lbs. (690-980 N) with a belt tension gauge.
4. Adjust the alternator belt.

3.0L Engine (Except SHO) and 3.8L Engine
VEHICLES THROUGH 1993 WITH AUTOMATIC TENSIONER
See Figures 4 and 5

1. Insert a 1 / 2 in. breaker bar into the square hole in the tensioner.

On the 3.8L engine, the tensioner has a1/2in. square hole cast into the rear of the tension arm directly behind the pulley. On the 3.0L engine, the1/2in. square hole is cast into the spring housing on the front of the tensioner.

1. Rotate the tensioner clockwise and remove the belt.

Fig. Fig. 5: 3.8L belt schematic-1993 shown

To install:

1. Install the drive belt over all the pulleys, except for the alternator pulley on the 3.0L engine for vehicles through 1992, or the idler pulley for 1993 3.0L vehicles.
2. Rotate tensioner counterclockwise and install the belt over the alternator pulley. Make sure that all the V-grooves make proper contact with the pulleys.
3. On the 3.0L engine, install the alternator belt for vehicles through 1992.
4. For 1993 3.0L vehicles, install the drive belt over the idler pulley.

You will see pulleys on the engine. The pulley with nothing behind it is an idler pulley. All the other pulleys have a water pump, A/C pump, steering pump, and alternator.

The idler pulley puts tension on the belt. It has a fitting for a socket drive, either 3/8 or 1/2. You are to insert a rachet or socket extension in that square hole. When you push the pulley down it takes out the slack and you can slip the old belt off. Then you tread the new belt around and push the idler pulley until you get enough play to put on the new part.

Hello there:
Normally a serpentine belt will stay on tight untill it begins to strech out after it streches out to far the tention idler pulley cannot keep the belt tension tight any longer thus resulting in a belt either coming off or other things happening So what i would do is to first remove the serpentine belt and ensure that the tention idler pulley is working good make sure it does not just move freely than get a new belt and install now you should be ok
Hope this is very helpful for you
Best regards Michael

Suggest replacing all the belts also. 1st belt, remove coolant reservoir. Loosen the pulley next to the res. then there is a tension bolt behind it. get under the car, the alternator is right there on the passenger side. possible under a small shield. Loosen all the bolts on the alternator, then there is a tentioner on the alternator. Loosen that, remove belt, then take out the rest of the bolts, along with the plug and the ground wire to the alternator. for the P/S belt, loosen the other pulley 14mm, and then the tention bolt is another 12mm.

Do you mean the belt? Should be a diagram under the hood on belt routing. Idler pulleys, are not adjustable, but a tentioner is what keeps the belt tight.

the pulley is also a dampener often times they seperate from each other. replace pulley/dampener.