Dayco, an engine products and drive systems supplier for the automotive, industrial, and aftermarket industries, has announced that despite industrywide supply chain challenges, its heavy-duty two-piece tensioner is stocked and ready for customer orders.
According to the company, the tensioner, designed to help address significant repair issues for Detroit Diesel 13 and 15 series engines, cuts installation time in half and helps ensure fleet uptime. In addition, Dayco’s technical team has developed a step-by-step installation video and one-page technical guide to ensure today’s technicians have the information needed for a quick and successful installation.
“This particular tensioner was engineered to be more durable and much easier to install than the original equipment,” said Jay Buckley, director of product management at Dayco North American Aftermarket. “With the original tensioner, techs are required to bend an eight-rib belt sideways through a narrow opening during replacement, which can lead to belt issues if not done carefully. We’ve addressed this issue and in doing so, cut installation time significantly.”
The Dayco team recently unveiled the tensioner at the AAPEX ‘21 show to help address significant repair issues for Detroit Diesel 13 and 15 series engines. Vehicle makes and models with these specific engine types use a competitor’s dual tensioner assembly—a one-piece tensioner that keeps tension on two belts—and while it’s been upgraded over time, is still very difficult to install.
Part number 89947 covers more than 600,000 2008-2020 Freightliner, Kimble Chassis, Pierce Manufacturing Inc., Sterling Truck, Van Hool and Western Star vehicle applications. With this new design, instead of struggling to get the belt on a one-piece tensioner, Dayco split the system in two, so the product has an outer and inner tensioner. Cutting installation time in half compared to traditional one-piece tensioners will help save hundreds of hours and dollars for fleet managers.