Finally getting around to replacing that cam position sensor on my '91 Bonneville I asked about last month.

I got the bolt out (that was fun), but the damper won't budge. No holes like Chevys to use a "normal" damper puller, just three unthreaded slots.

Left the Haynes in the other car, daughter has it tonight, won't be back until tomorrow.

Is there a "special" tool for removing this thing? Last Buick V6 I had apart was an '81, the damper just slid off after the bolt was out.

HELP!!!!!

 

What about a brake drum puller?

I wonder if that might work...

 

Don't think I want to do that. It's a rubber-mounted pulley around a steel humb.

 

If I remember correctly, there ARE 3 threaded holes to use a puller on. BUT, you can only see them if you look in the 3 slots on the outside of the balancer.

Now, I know this is true for some 3.8's, but I'm not sure about yours. Look and find out........

 

If they're not threaded, couldn't you just run a tap in the holes if there's room?

Brad...

 

This is from my 2000 Impala 3.8:


Ron

 

part 2 of 2.

 

There is a special tool. Big A type places sell it. $30 or so.

 

Just so we're all on the same sheet of music:

The slots are not threaded, and are a thickish sheet metal, that's all. Got the Haynes back this morning, at the beginning of the front cover removal section it says "a special tool is required to remove the damper from distributorless ignition engines" - lots of help, no picture, description, etc. Then in the text it says to see the previous section when you get to the part about removing the damper. Go to that section, it says "remove bolt, the damper should come off by hand", and has a picture of the distributor-type damper. Oh, well.

The '91 looks a lot different than the picture of the 2000.

I have a harmonic damper removal tool. Works fine on the SBC and BBC dampers. Uses three threaded bolts.

I picked up a three-jaw pulley puller, spent almost an hour modifying the jaws so they'd fit into the slots, finally got it off.

Ugly, but effective.

Now, to get that front cover off, timing set and interupter installed, and back together.

After my son's piano recital, that is...