Just recently my 92 EX started to make a high screeching sound at idle but when I got up to speed it would stop. Now I thought it was my belt so I tightened and loosened it and the noise didn't go so its not my belt. Is this a sign of a bad alternator pulley?

 

take the belt off and spin it and see if it's rough or not

 

arent there two bearings inside the alternator?

 

yes

 

how do you know which bearing is going bad then?

 

You might be able to listen to it with a long screwdriver(While it is running) But, unless you go to a junkyard, and remove the bearing, youll have to just reaplace the whole thing. You cant even buy rebuilt kits for alternators/starters any more. Unless you order them online, and even then it isnt really easy(Finding the right parts). Its a $$ thing, the parts companies have figured out it is more profitible to sell rebuilt units, than the parts to rebuild.

 

Yep, you don't care which one it is. You're more or less going to want to just buy a Denso reman anyhow. You just want to isolate it to the Alternator or not. If you're going to want to rebuild it yourself, I'm not even sure you can find all the parts, they are going to be dealer parts and without looking it up right now to see if you can get the parts or even the bearings, by myself, it would be cost efficient to just get a Denso reman from rockauto.

 

Just a note to add here.... if the belt is glazed over or worn out it won't make any difference if it is loose or tight. It can and will probably still screech at idle/startup. To check this, spray the belt with WD-40 while the car is idling and making the noise. If the noise goes away as you spray it, replace the belt!

 

Thats something that just went over my head, why i didnt try that idk but that will be the first thing and we will see how that goes. if it is the alternator seems like its weather i wanna spend more money on a rebuild kit or parts from the dealer or just get a new alternator in itself from what it sounds like in previous replies.

 

thank you again for all the help folks i greatly appreciate it.

 

You have two belts, you should do like Ghost said and use wd40 and spray boths belt one at a time as it goes into a pulley and see if the noise changes. I just realized you said it stops as you get on it so it probably will be a belt either being too loose or being bad like Ghost said.

If the noise changes you've found the culprit. It's probably not the bearing since bearings make more noise when hot and it would be constant or worse. It wouldn't go away when you really push it.