Is a harmonic balancer necessary?
Without the harmonic balancer there is a high risk your crankshaft would crack or a serpentine belt would be thrown off track. A simple way to think of the harmonic balancer is like a massive stress reliever.
What is the difference between a harmonic balancer and a damper?
A balancer adds weight to help (externally) balance the lower rotating assembly of an engine, while a damper, quells the vibrations during crankshaft vibration which occur as a function of the combustion process. Keep in mind, while all harmonic balancers are dampers, all dampers are not balancers.
Do all engines have a harmonic balancer?
A common part found on all high-performance engines is a harmonic damper (or harmonic balancer, as they are often called). Found at the front of the engine attached to the snout of the crankshaft, harmonic dampers are used to quell the harmonics of the crankshaft.
Is a damper a harmonic balancer?
A harmonic balancer (sometimes called crankshaft damper, torsional damper, or vibration damper) is the same thing as a harmonic damper except that the balancer includes a counterweight to externally balance the rotating assembly.
Can you run an engine without harmonic balancer?
The harmonic balancer is essentially part of the crankshaft pulley. And because the belts that go around the crankshaft pulley run all of the car’s accessories, without the harmonic balancer you’d have no air conditioning, no power steering, no alternator and no water pump.
How long do harmonic balancers last?
On certain engines, sometimes these last forever, last the life of the engine. And certain engines they might only last 50,000 miles or less than 10 years.
Can a car run without a harmonic balancer?
Is a bigger harmonic balancer better?
No matter what anybody tells you, size does matter when it comes to the harmonic balancer you use on an engine. Putting an incorrectly-sized balancer on an engine will do more than just cause it to not reach its full performance potential … it will cause serious damage to the rotating assembly.
Does a harmonic balancer increase horsepower?
Adding an upgraded harmonic balancer is a great way to keep your engine from having serious issues as horsepower increases. LeBarron goes a little deeper into the issues a stock harmonic balancer will experience as you up the power.
What happens when harmonic balancer fails?
If the harmonic balancer gets too old or fails and can no longer properly absorb the harmonic vibrations, the engine will shake excessively. The shaking will become even more pronounced, and therefore dangerous to the engine at high speeds.
What causes a harmonic balancer to fail?
If the rubber layer in the harmonic balancer dries or wears out, it can cause the entire harmonic balancer to completely fail by separating. If the harmonic balancer separates, the engine belts will usually come off and the vehicle will be left without engine accessories.
What causes a harmonic balancer to go bad?
Over time, the crankshaft harmonic balancer can go bad from constant exposure to chemicals, the elements, or from old age. If this happens, the crankshaft may develop cracks and ultimately fail.
Does harmonic balancer affect timing?
Misaligned timing marks
Another symptom of a potential problem with the harmonic balancer is misaligned timing marks.