Low Range Off Road Harmonic balancer for Geo Tracker

Hi! dne’ here!;)

I like to brag on products and companies when I can! While working on my 97 Geo Tracker with a 1.6, 16 valve engine, I noticed an oil leak from the crankshaft seal:(  OMG it was a mess down there! I also noticed the plastic timing cover was being eaten into by the harmonic balancer, at least that what I thought!

I’m telling ya~ I would have bet money that the harmonic balancer was coming apart and eating into the timing cover! That looks nasty doesn’t it! However, I learned from Fritz, the owner of Tracker Ranch, that these plastic covers swell, become deformed over time and have to be replaced.

Getting to the harmonic balancer isn’t too bad a job. It’s held on by 5 small bolts, 5/16″ IIRC. I put it on the workbench and immediately noticed a gap in which I thought shouldn’t be there, like it’s separating! However, I soon learned quickly that this is a normal, but an ugly harmonic balancer.

Fortunately Low Range Off Road makes a replacement harmonic balancer that is just totally awesome! I feel it’s priced at a very reasonable at about 50 bucks or so, but they also have the replacement timing cover with the gasket/seal/ and the pesky little spacers that go in each bolt hole. I don’t feel it’s a balancer anymore as it’s not heavy at all, but is balanced in the sense that when they make them, it is “balanced”.

The machine work is a perfect match when compared to the original!

The next two pics just show the comparison of weight:

With the arrival of the parts(timing cover and harmonic balancer), I have to work on my engine to personalize it! I can’t put this all together without making it look much nicer! These engines have feelings too and need a little TLC!;)  So some ceramic red paint, some Low Range decals, followed by a clear coat~ makes for a very nice looking Timing cover to compliment the new Harmonic Balancer!

This is just a test fitting of the new Low Range Harmonic balancer, I was just excited to see it on before the timing cover! At this point, I hadn’t replaced the water pump or timing belt yet, that will be in another blog:

After putting it all together~ I feel no vibrations, other than what I remember when I drove the little Truck before this operation. Supposedly, this lightweight balancer allows the engine to rev quicker~ I don’t pay attention to that, but maybe so? Eh, I just know it looks great!

I hope you liked this little blog! I think the Geo Tracker is a cool vehicle and deserves good parts to make it look great! Low Range Off Road has some cool stuff! Check em out! Hey, don’t forget to sign up for updates on Classic Cars and Tools! and hey! If you like what you see, just leave a tiny note saying so? 😉

Your car enthusiast friend~