Squeaking Belts
On occasion the belts on our 2002 XLT V-6 start squeaking badly. Last fall (around 22,000 miles) I took it to the dealer where they replaced the idler pulley and a belt. Problem went away until right before Christmas. By the time I was able to get it back to the dealer the problem went away again. Today I ran it through an automatic car wash w/the undercarriage blast. Now they are squeaking worse than ever. I called the dealer, he claims moisture on the belts and pulleys can cause the belts to slip on on the pulleys as they are turning. If this is the case, I would think this could affect the performance of the engine. He said to bring it in and that the belts may have too much slack in them. Anyone have the same problem? Thanks.
TJ
TJ
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Comments
I think it's the rubber compound used in the belt, myself... OEMs look like Dayton belts, and basically what is stocked in the consumer-parts joints are all dayton belts. if I could fall across a Gates belt, I would change in an instant and see if that made a difference. used to be in building maintenance, if brand X was screwy on a machine, brand Y would often run better, assuming there was no pulley damage and the belt was not overloaded. [ full disclosure corner... I have an old college friend who works for the Gates belt plant in Nebraska, and they would like to see the business, I'm sure. ]
TJ
so, your doofus will be able to check his theories and report back sometime before he dies.
good to know the "gatorback" belt worked, vidtech
so close, so many times, but just can't get it done. always good to be able to admit when you just can't complete something and don't screw around disassembling half the car so nobody will touch the last, I suppose 20 seconds, of the job.
and to compound the doofus report, of course, I was too ( ) after the columbia news and screwing around on the car to clearly note that I have a spare Motorcraft belt in the back, open up the hatch, open up the duffel bag, and make one more try with a new factory belt. that kept me up a few hours last night
moral: get an earlier start. it does also help if you have a confederate availiable that can use a tool to help try pull a belt over the pulleys from the top, and who you know is absolutely smart enough to not get their freaking fingers in the work zone, so you don't have blood gushers or severed digits falling on you underneath.
ah, well, at worst case that's only party money for my 50th at risk, and no corollary damage to the truck.
and some people wonder why service guys get all those big bucks... experience helps and insuring they have the tools and a partner or two in the shop helps...
As with any job, the tools make all the difference in the world.
Too bad they didn't make them so the tensioner would lock in the release position so those who don't have 3 hands could get the belt wrapped around all the pulleys.
Batman, too funny. The couped crusader, huh? LOL!
Are you picking on me? LOL!
meantime, we're getting 10 inches of snow, and I'll be dependent on a cab on rotten roads to get to my four-by.
probably would have never snowed if I hadn't gotten into that position, though... and the way winter has been around here, if I wanted 20, I would have left the hood up and my tools out overnight
hey, you minnesota snowmobilers, you owe me BIG time for making it snow :-D
no squeaks today, we'll see how it behaves after being driven home and put away wet overnight.
swschrad,
That is a pretty decent price. Can't complain about that. LOL!
So Alcan, I guess that makes you Alfred?
LOL!! Oh man, I'm slaying myself. Ha Ha.
Oops, sorry. Off topic. LOL!
Gotta keep buying those new tools to work on the new cars!
Lisle, KD and others stay pretty busy!
for serviceability, an old 60s mopar or chevy was nice. I only came close to setting my first car, a 61 skylark, on fire once... learning about clearance for parts with too big a battery post connector. the stuck float on the carb doesn't count, there was no vapor when the gas shot up a foot
my exploder isn't BAD, mind you, but things just don't jump under your hands like they used to.
--> 30 Hp induction air blower, V-belt snapped, replacement snapped, had to replace gooked-up pulley before I could get cool air back into the wards.
--> 1964 mopar, V-belt, loaded squeal and belt was thrumming between pulleys like a mad thing.
I don't think so. I might add for no good purpose whatsoever that so far there is no noise at all from my new Gates belt, but then, new belts never act up. they have to run a while to get the usual metal particles in the underside, road dust pounded into the rubber, etc. before you can tell if they are going to behave for their run life.
at a store selling a goodyear "flextra" belts.those only lasted a short time.they were cheaper too.i guess you get what you pay for.
the gates belt I put on was two bucks more than a Dayco belt; on the gates site, I didn't see that they have a premium line for serpentine belts.
My nearby Goodyear store is company owned, rather than a franchise. I will not overlook the low quality of the tires they put on my Ranger when I gave up a good set of Firestone Wilderness tires, being plainly greedy to get the new tires for free. After three sessions that included replacing one new tire and rebalancing over and over again, the lousy Wrangler RT/S tires are now marginally acceptable. Are their belts any better? Even at half price, maybe I should reconsider!
even before the hoorah about the Wilderness ATs came out, I had determined they were pretty lame footprints.
Not many folks got Michelin XTCs or Cross Country tires in the "customer satisfaction initiative," there were a lot of Wranglers and Generals around here. I find the General Ameri-660s I got are far and away a better tire under all conditions than the => KILLER TIRES! <= tm were. there were stories about "7-ounce" Goodyears around town, but the guy in the next cube from me got a good set of Wranglers on his truck.
at the price, you don't like 'em, get something else and you've learned a lesson.
as for V-belts, the topline goodyears ran well when I did some maintenance helper stuff to pay my second college degree off in the early 80s. serpentines in cars were pretty rare at that point. goodyear did have a double-priced silly-looking overwrapped belt at that time that looked like lizard skin, we had a couple on air handlers and they wore like nothing else. if those are the prototype of the gatorbacks, and you have ever had any reason to worry about whether you could get to safety because of a belt failure, worry no more after the installation, those belts were primo. Gates held up well, too.
Dayton/Dayco/DriveRite is a good standard belt, and goodyear had two lines of belts, a standard and a "better", that ran about the same length. the "better" seemed to be straighter and ran a little cooler. "who's he?" belts varied all over the lot, usually chunked or linted early and ran crooked to boot.
have not burned up all that many serpentines, this experience is the first time I've gotten away from the Ford and Dayco (they look and feel the same to me) and tried something else to can the occasional squealing in humidity.
Naaaah! I'm dedicated to the idea that Goodyear is going to see me to the end of the tread life on Wranglers, or replace them with another brand of tires. I've heard the same stories now, that Goodyear used the Ford initiative to get rid of dock loads of tires that should have been used for ballast in paving plants in third world countries. This level of treatment by G'year is unacceptable.
no squeals yet after my change to a Gates from the OEM apparently-Dayco, but it's only one month yet. you might get a month of quiet out of two old pair of pantyhose tied together....
now the SO's squeaks, ahhhh, .......
I have found over the years that the Gates Rubber Company has never disappointed me. I can't say that about the other brands, unfortunately.
Gates Rubber Co. belts go on cars, trucks, air handlers, what have you, and run for years without attention. you can see when they aren't on right, and fix it yourself with hand tools, some of which alas are unique due to squirrelly packing of the engine compartment by the carmakers.
there is a difference