How to Remove the Crank Shaft Pulley Bolt on a Honda Accord 

I just wanted to let you know that you saved me. I bought a bigger impact wrench, 650Ft-Lbs. A bigger air compressor, Bigger air lines. Nothing broke the bolt. Watched your video. Then with 30" of extensions, a 24" breaker bar and a 10' cheater bar. The 10' cheater bar was rotated through an arc of about 110 degrees twisting the extensions until the bolt broke free. I put the extension inside a pipe in case they exploded. Fortunately everything survived.

I used one impact wrench with 950 foot-pound torque, and I could not get it losse. Then, I follow your method, and still took me hours to get it off. Thanks very much for posting.

I like the idea of using the jack to hold the socket in place. Stole it and it worked for me

Thanks guys! My son and I used your "jackstand/6 foot pipe" set-up on a breaker bar and it worked like a charm! We couldn't believe it was that tight.

hondas are counter clock wise engines so if you use the bump start method you will tighten the bolt and snap the head off. the good news is once the head of the bolt is snapped off, the threads are free from tension and with luck you can unscrew it and buy a new bolt .

Thank you! Always good to know other ways to get this bolt off. Well done.

Removing the crankshaft pulley bolt on the VTEC was such a PIA. I used a decent size 240V compressor with an impact wrench to no avail - sucker was too tight, exceeded the rating of my impact wrench! I ended up using an 6 foot cheater bar and jump on it for a few minutes before the bolt came loose with a popping sound. I figured the bolt came loose at more than 600 foot-pounds!

You're not supposed to use torque wrenches to remove bolts or nuts. You'll mess up the torque mechanism specs will be off when it comes to tightening

I drilled a hole in the pully then bolted 🔩 it to a chain. Run the chain up to the alternator Bracket. Around then bolted through the chain. I didn't pop for the Special Tool so I improvised. The old harmonic balancer was toast. Remember to not lose the little square Key That goes on the crank ! Have fun 😊

Thanks for your video. After a while trying to break it loose with a short bar under the Ridgeline I bought some extensions and copied your setup. Worked like a charm.

In the video the young man commented that they used propane to heat the crank screw. The canister clearly shown in the video was the color yellow which means it was not propane, but instead, MAP gas which burns much hotter than propane. You will need to buy the MAP gas to get the Screw hot enough for removal.

It's the fat washer that corrodes onto the harmonic ballancer and the bolt. This corrosion combined with a large contact surface area is what makes this bolt hard to crack loose. The solution that is the fastest and most convenient is to heat the washer quickly using an oxy-aceltaline torch even just on one side till it's red and then hit it with an impact gun and then dump the bolt (washer and all) into water. Done. I also put the Harmonic Ballancer in water too to protect the rubber.

I once had to weld a 1/2" drive socket onto a crankshaft pulley that was SUPER stuck and boogered up from other people trying to get it off the crank.. The heat from the welding loosened it right up. :-)

legend bro, i jus done ths trick but i used a 3 ft pole n it cracked, iv been trying fo 3days to get the bolt off, next mission: gettn the pulley off

@93hbcivicsi also, now that you used heat on the bolt, i hope you replaced your crank seal.

Hmm, I used the Honda tool attached to a 2-ft breaker bar braced against the floor and a second 2-ft breaker bar to break the bolt loose - came off in about 5 secs. This was done on an Acura Legend, but I can't imagine it being too much different on a 4-cyl Honda. I guess I'll find out when I do my CR-V in a week or so.

love it....you knew what you had to do, and you did it....looks like dad is your able assistant....perfect

Sounds like some good ole' father-son time :)

Propane doesn't usually do the job. MAPP gas is almost twice as hot - near 2000 degrees F hotter. It gets in and gets the job done. But do beware, rubber seals can be affected in the vicinity. But again, the MAPP gas doesn't have to be on as long, thus, the heat is more directed for a shorter time. Get that hot bolt out and quench it with some water. Just my two cents.

Yeah hondas pulleys turn counter clockwise (left looking at the pulley) so does the bolt. Attaching a breaker bar, disconnecting the fuel distribution (pump, relay or fuse) and turning the key would essentially tighten the bolt.

The factory manual actually suggests the bolt be tightened to 180 ft/lbs...I am reading it right now in my lap. The problem is if someone has put locktight on the bolt or overtightened it previously - some mechanics are not too careful about those things.

One thing I also recommend is that you throw a towel over the head of the wrench just in case the metal breaks. This would stop any shrapnel from flying around. Some metal pieces came close to my face when my torque wrench broke.

if the head is also off, put a small cloth towel on a piston that is almost TDC, put head back on with a couple of head bolts, and engine cannot turn in one direction. Worked great for me.

unless you plan on removing the front main seal, it's a chance that you destroy it with propane. just saying, but i bet it felt dam good after you finely broke it loose, ya!

@BBAC2006 It is the factory tool designed for this. I am not sure it has a specific name. I believe I bought it at Autozone. They wouldn't loan the tool to me, I had to buy it. Although, they do loan out other specialty tools. I think it was $26.

Using propane will melt the crankshaft oil seals. Also you can jam the flywheel and open this crankshaft pulley. Done it many times on both b and d series honda engines. Air tools remove them pretty quickly.

I had similar thing too while trying to remove a bolt from 3sfe engine (my friend's car). We ended up driving to the truck tire shop and they broke this bolt loose for us using 3/4 drive HD air impact gun for truck tires. the factory torque is only 80lbs-ft; on my car I used 18v cordless impact without problem:)

ever tried to watch movies through OBDII scanner ?

What I am surprised at is that you didn't break the ratchet, usually a breaker bar is the only thing that can take the strain of an pipe/handle extension.

Just broke a snap on johnson bar with pipe on end, tried ingersol rand 1/2 inch battery powered impact didnt work, used 3/4 inch I/R air impact still no go. will try to borrow the lisle locking tool and retry

U helped me alot m8.Gonna do my HR-V tommorow

they are calibrated to ensure proper tightening of bolts/ nuts to manufactures specifications. have you ever used one? they have either an analog or digital readout and you apply pressure until it hits the specified number. measured in ft.lbs.(foot pounds), for example, all Honda cars( between 1984-2003) wheel nuts/ or lug nuts if you will are to be torqued to 80 ft.lbs.

You are the MAN -- Thank you for sharing this!!!

All you needed was an impact driver and Lisle 77080 19 mm Harmonic Balancer Socket

Cody has the right idea but you can position the wrench on the other side towards the front part of the car

I wasnt talking to you. It was to cody . because that engine turns ccw meaning you will be turning to the right instead of loosening the bolt if you crank the starter

Good job. I did not have the special tool and had to jam the flywheel with a screwdriver in order to loose the bolt.

Because that bolt coming loose can cause more damage to your engine than ANY other bolt coming loose on your car. This coming loose will cause your timing to jump, it will knock out our accessory belt as well... possibly damming anything from your power steering pump, alternator, to causing head and valve damage from the jumped timing since this is an interference engine.

which way you loose the bolt...

I just did this today. the starter trick didn't work. Had to go buy the holder tool, and use a 2.5' breaker bar. Loads of fun.

I tried a propane torch, as in this video, on my 91 accord with a 5 ft. piece of pipe with no success. I then resorted a week later to use an oxy-acetyline torch, but had to apply heat, impact wrench, heat, impact,etc., ect., ect. until it finally released. Every case is different but this one was pretty difficult.

Ohh that breaker bar looks expensive. Not even my Pro Snap-on XT7100 1/2' impact can budge this sucker and it's 800 ft lbs. in reverse. Guess it's gonna be my breaker bar and a handle off a floor jack. Inventive idea with the jackstand!

never use a torque wrench to break bolts loose, that's what a breaker bar is for. torque wrenches are only to apply final torque to a bolt to bring it to spec when tightening.

i acualy welded 1/4 in wall pipe onto that too to make it easeiest.. mine is about 3ft long.

I made my own in 2005, welded two hex end pipe fittings together. Now the car needs another belt. Doing it this weekend.

Yep. This is what we did. I tried to crank method but it was a no go.

@mnsnoman The flame is just concentrated on the bolt only. I could touch the pulley with my hand - it was barley hot. Probably gets hotter when the engine is running.

impact wrench. worth every penny

@dgl1962 no it won't....... that little torch doesn't get that hot to damage crank seal. Prior to getting to the seal, you have the crank pulley itself, and the sprocket. So the heat never really reaches the seal. Ur only warming the bolt.

there r seals and bearings behind that pully so if ya dont have to use gas u probably shouldnt and if ya do u should replace seals and bearings

This guy needs a impact 175psi 1/2 line.... grey IR does the trick

I made a tool like this before they where selling them. made it out of a 3/4 drive socket cut the top of the socket off so a 3/4 19mm socket will fit in the opening welded an arm on the socket had to cut off the out side of the socket till it fit the hex hole in the pulley. turned it till the welded arm hit the frame . installed 3/4 n19mm and 3/4 breaker bar . ONE KICK and most would come loose (most is 3 kicks) they stole my patent. NO EXTENSION BARS i do these belts for 100 buck labor

We did the same, but we used a 3/4 ratchet with some extensions and a 3/4 to 1/2 reducer to the socket. I had to climb on the brake bar and apply my weight (210 lbs) to loosen it up. How do you pull the pulley from the car?

I think a torque wrench is not suposed to be used to remove bolts.. its to "torque" bolts, correct me if i am wrong.

Yeah i dont understand what posses people to use a torque wrench as a breaker bar... what else did you break?

I hope i have some luck with a 94 accord replacing the belt. I ordered an Aircat 1100ft tq impact but have no holding tool yet and i was hoping with this impact gun and a 60 gallon 125psi compressor, it might work (crossing fingers here). I hear too many horror stories on honda crankshaft pulley bolts :(

im on week 2 trying to get a crank pulley bolt out on my 2004 TL lol. used everything from half inch electric impact to 1 inch electric impact plus 5 foot pipe on a 40 inch long 3/4 breaker bar.

all hondas have locktite on the crank bolts. the proper torque for the crank bolt is 180 ftlbs. never use a torque wrench to break a bolt loose. they're for tightening!

yeaaaah that heating the nut works greaaaat i had the some issue but as soon as i heated it with my torch baaaaam it came off quick!!!!!!!!!

@RichardEllisxyz Well, I broke my Dad's 15 year old Craftsman torque wrench...then I just used a 1/2 socket wrench with a long metal tube extender on it. It was sad since he had had it for so long. I bought him a 250 ft/lds wrench to replace it.

most honda engine are counter clock wise rotation. but yeah on most cars that is the easiest way

i sprung 120$ for a harbor freight 1" impact, takes 2 air hoses to fully run it, but ive yet to find a bolt it wont pull off... 18 wheeler lug nuts, crank bolts, rusted muffler bolts etc, if it wont spin, itll at least break off...

I found a better and more easier way to do it. (by the way excuse my language im swedish). I have a small compressor and this tool you use when you remove the tires. Looks like a gun. The trick is to use cooling spray, i found one in my garage for loosening rusty screws and nuts. And i empty the whole can on the crankshaft bolt and i went off very easy. I couldnt get it loose at first but after the cooling spray it was easy. So try it next time :)

What is that tool called that is stopping the crank pulley from spinning?

I thought Honda had a one piece tool that had the breaker bar as part of the unit. look expensive so I made my own out of spare parts .those online pop outs suck. my friend also a mechanic bought one on line and he's always borrowing mine.

Pre '90 Hondas don't have the hex cutout in the pulley, so unless you have a high torque impact the do it youselfer is screwed. Why the hell does Honda torque the damn bolts so tight?

Gracias por subir este video.

@rufuspfl nahhhh lmfao its like 180ft-lbs dude, 600-900 is what it takes to get that bad boy off because it binds the threads together overtime, thus, making it tighter than it was originally torque down to.

good video!!! thanks a lot guys.

I see people saying don't use a torque wrench to remove,why is that?

Amusing to hear people saying they used a "torque wrench". I would never use a torque wrench to break loose a crank pulley bolt. I would use a breaker bar and if I had to, a cheater bar. I've had to when loosening one on an Accord.

Now that what I call a breaker bar lol

How did you guys hold the engine from spinning

Oh i see, you ARE using a handle off your own floor jack, now that I see your handle is missing. Good. Then I don't need to spend $500 for a six-foot long breaker bar.

also we had to apply PB blaster.

I've done a lot of research on this subject and this is the tool you need to take the bolt off easy. All you need is a air gun or a cordless impact wrench. It took me a while to find it but I found it. Lisle 77080 19 mm Harmonic Balancer Socket for Honda. www.amazon.com/Lisle-77080-Harmonic-Balancer-Socket/dp/B00RGNCV1U

Where did you get the adapter for the pulley?

are all honda crank pulleys lefty-loosey? inquiring minds want to know!

How about brace it the opposite way. It works. Have done it.

Well unless you made the tool before 1990 then no... it existed. Honda makes this tool as well as many others now. Look in a Honda manual... it specifies using this tool to remove the bolt/pulley.

@cwbell63801 Tried it, but it didn't work...it actually tightened it more. If the pulley was on the left side of the car (facing the car) it would work.

what do u do to get it back on?

u guys had air tools?

you didn't try the starter trick.

Craftsmen stuff is lifetime warranty.... Take it in to sears they will replace it no questions asked.

The extensions are what killed you! If you would have just used a ratchet and 19mm socket it would have came right undone!

Not knocking you here but if you are just trying to get the nut out I will tell you the easiest way ever and save you money and a lot of headache. If you have two 10 in extensions and a breaker bar that can touch the ground this is what you do. Put the 19mm socket on the two extensions put the breaker bar on there the the way you need it to go make sure it is secure on concrete or a solid object go barely turn the engine over do not let it crank but just tap it once or twice and wallah it will pop loose.

I did it on a Toyota Camery LE 1997..Damm no need to be hostile man chill out turbo...

nice

I got it at Autozone.

Good Idea kummode but u can damage or break ur bendix dont get me wrog but it work's.

i like the six foot long pipe thing. What pipe is that and where i can find it?

I hate locktite, last owner put it on the transmission drain plug and oil drain plug. 2002 ford explorer. UUuuuggghh

False. That only works if the crank pulley is on the other side of the car (reverse). If you did that on a Honda it would actually be tightening the bolt. Trust me - I tried it!

WHY ON EARTH WOULD YOU USE A TORQUE WRENCH TO LOOSEN A BOLT ? That is why they make BREAKER BARS - to Break the Bolt Free .. Torque as in How Tight should it be .. Torque wrench to tighten, Breaker Bar to loosen.

Bump the starter, easiest

lol DIY lessons ftw

thats not propane

And sry it was in caps my Keyboard had the caps lock on and the key was gone so it wouldent go off. fyi..

It would have been nice if they had made the Milwaukee M18 FUEL™ 1/2" High Torque Impact Wrench with Friction Ring Kit 2763-22 when you were working on this project. From what I've seen it's a beast. Most people say it's stronger than the top of the line Snap-On or IR. I have this job coming up and I'll get back with you to tell you if the Milwaukee 2763 did the trick with this iconic bolt. Check out the video on this Milwaukee impact wrench. I bought one but I haven't tried it on that notorious bolt. www.milwaukeetool.com/power-tools/cordless/2763-22