Belt is squeaking on car, okay to drive?
This could be a symptom of a bad drive or serpentine belt. The most common symptom of a bad drive belt is a squealing or whining sound. It usually gets worse and more frequent over time. In the beginning you may notice the squealing or whining sound more in cold weather or when you are accelerating your car. If this sounds like a noise your car is making, take a look at your belt to see if it needs to be replaced. Small cracks aren’t necessarily an indicator that the belt needs replaced. If you see cracks about 3 mm apart all around the belt, it probably should be replaced. If there are large chunks missing, this is also a sign that you are going to need a new belt. This belt is usually ribbed, so don’t mistake the ribs for chunks!
Can a bar of soap fix squealing belts?
I can tell your grandpa is very wise, but getting up there. Usually when a belt that is new is squealing there is a reason. The soap idea will work to a certain degree. Belt dressing does a better job. I would be checking to see that the belt tension is correct. One of the most common things overlooked in the newer cares as they have auto tension's Also you need to check and see if the pulleys are worn out or you might have a bearing going out in either the tension-er or the alternator. A squeaking belt is a sign of something else. Good luck
Will brake fluid on the drive belt stop any squeaks for a Ram 1500 5.7 Hemi?
Okay, I heard that putting any type of lubricant on a belt will decrease the power that the accessories connected to the belt will recieve, such as the power-steering and alternator. I'm really hesitant about putting brake fluid on the belt, and is it generally considered a lubricant to the extend where it will reduce the power the belt provides? Also, what about something like turtle wax? Would that help without reducing power? Lastly, it was explained to me that over time, the pulleys can develop a glaze on them from the belt. When you replace a belt, you're supposed to take a wire brush, and clean off the glaze from the pulleys. I really don't think the noise is bad enough to warrent the removal of the belt, so would it help if I take a wire brush, and clean the exposed parts of the pulleys that are not covered by the belt? Thank you so much for all your help, you guys are great.
How can I tighten drive belt on 1999 Ford Crown Victoria?
If the accessory drive belt (serpentine belt) is properly adjusted and you're still getting squealing noises, then suspect one of the accessories that the belt drives is getting ready to fail. Back off on the tension of the belt and try turning the accessory pulleys (alternator, water pump, etc) by hand. They should move freely with no binding or rough, grinding feel.
What can cause my serpentine belt to snap while driving?
Age is the most likely cause. As rubber ages, it loses volatile compounds. The loss of these compounds has a drying effect that makes the rubber lose its elasticity; it becomes brittle and cracks.The rubber itself doesn't have a lot of tensile strength; the fiber cords (usually cotton or some polymer) provide the tensile strength. The cracks allow water and oxygen to reach the cords, which contributes to deterioration of the cords, weakening them.The failure of a bearing on an idler pulley, in an alternator, water pump, or some other accessory can cause undue abrasive wear on the belt.A rusty pulley can also cause excess wear leading to failure.Finally, someone could have sabotaged the belt by partially cutting through it.
What happens if you attempt to drive with a broken serpentine belt?
The serpentine belt powers many different accessories and required pieces of equipment on an engine. You can live without the air conditioner. The car is usable for a short time without the alternator working if you have a good battery. You can man handle the steering wheel without power steering. Some cars have a smog/emissions control pump that needs to work or the engine will run rough or even not at all.BUT, you will overheat your engine if the water pump is not turning and pumping coolant through the engine and radiator. You could make a short drive of 5 minutes or so before engine heat would be a problem. Hopefully, that is to a mechanic who will replace the broken serpentine belt.
How can I fix a squeaky serpentine belt?
The important thing is to figure out why it’s squeaking or even if it’s squeaking at all — it might be another component. A serpentine belt might wind it’s way through six or more pulleys and component and any one of ’em can be the culprit.So, the thing to do is take the belt off (or compress the tensioner and remove it from one of the components) so it can be inspected. Once the belt is off (or loose), check each component for ease of rotation, noise or squeaking, and pay particular attention for any lateral movement. Some in-and-out movement is OK but there should be no back-and-forth/up-and-down movement. Of course you must check the belt itself.You must also check alignment of the belt with the components it turns. Most of the components are “fixed” and are unlikely to cause alignment issues but if their respective pulley has migrated in or out on its shaft it can happen. The crankshaft pulley has a built in dampener which can deteriorate and can allow the pulley to become misaligned. The more likely cause of misalignment is going to be the automatic tensioner so pay close attention to it. Alignment must be checked with the belt in place and under tension so do this before removing it from the vehicle. You mayIf you don’t find any issues with any of the components, change the belt and hope for the best.NOTE: Belt dressing is not recommended with modern serpentine belts.
My car is making a rattling sound near the fan belt. I replaced all of the pulleys and the belt but the noise is still there. I took off the fan belt and started the engine. This time the noise went away. What are your thoughts about this?
It sounds like a worn bearing, likely in one of the belt-driven accessories (alternator, water pump, A/C compressor, power steering pump). The best tool to localize something like this is a mechanic’s stethoscope:Mechanic's StethoscopeCarefully use it to probe around the various components (in the bearing area behind the drive pulleys) while the engine is running. When you find the bad one, it should be obvious by the volume of the sound.
Can I put dish soap on my squeaky serpentine belt?
Hells yes you can put dish soap on it, for that matter you could even pee on a spark plug, But if you want to fix it.....? check the serpentine belt tensioner and idler pulley, make sure of proper pulley alignment. A new belt should not be noisy ! Sprays or anything else is not the answer ! Unless you want to be stranded somewhere with a derailed belt
Does Gatorback serpentine belt really run much quieter than other belts?
I’m a fan of Gatorback Serpentine Belts. I use have a supercharged Miata running 18psi of boost, which will put a workout on the belt. I ran Gatorback belts for my blower for many racing seasons and had great luck with them holding under heavy load.Unfortunately there many factors to take into consideration on what is causing belt noise in the first place. Misaligned accessory pulleys can put uneven loads on the belt and cause slippage. The internal construction and quality of the rubber used in the making of the belt, just like with tires, is the biggest determining factor in performance of grip and noise.The Short Answers:Replacing an old belt with a new belt, it will be quieter.Replacing that old belt with a higher quality Gatorback belt, might be better yet, but difficult to actually quantify for the average person outside the confines of a testing environment like Continental put together in Micheal Chang’s post.It’s an item that I tend to not go cheap on when purchasing since it can leave you stranded in a heartbeat. So whether you buy Gatorback or Continental, doesn’t matter in my opinion, just don’t go cheap.