How to change the belt tensioner on a 2001 Ford Taurus?

How to change the belt tensioner on a 2001 Ford Taurus?

Because of room restrictions, you will need to rent the 15mm Belt tensioner removal tool from Autozone ($30). Place the 15mm open end wrench tool on the belt tensioner pulley nut and pull towards the front of the car. (clockwise) this will remove the tension on the belt allowing removal. Remove the belt by sliding it off the Idler pulley located directly above the tensioner pulley. If you are just replacing the pulley and not the whole tensioner/pulley assembly, remove the pulley nut by torquing in the counter-clockwise direction while the assembly is still mounted to the car. If you do not remove the nut that holds the pulley on while the tensioner is still mounted to the vehicle, you will have to place the unit in a vise or use a C-clamp to hold the unit steady as you turn the bolt that holds the pulley onto the tensioner. If you are replacing the entire tensioner you will not have to remove the pulley and you can skip this step. To remove the entire tensioner, you will need a T50 torques bit. Turn the Torques bit bolt counter clockwise. Remember the positioning as the pulley is located below the mounting screw for the tensioner and is very hard to relocate with your hands in the way.