Belts Squeeking

[coreymh]

I just recently replaced the ps pump and alternator and both the belts. My car makes this horrible squeeling noise at start up and sometimes when the car sits and stays at idle.Also i noticed it does it when the alternator gets put under a lot of load (ex. Giving a car a jump stat). If i give it a quick rev it goes away. I thought maybe i needed to break the belts in, but it has been over 400 miles now. Any ideas?

 

[DSM97GST]

I had the same problem with the alt belt on my 1g. the problem is that the belt is not aligned properly. Try loosening up the alternator a bit and move the alt bracket to the sides until the noise goes away. It should never squeek at all.

If you keep running your car like that, it won't be long until you go to your local auto shop store to buy another one...I snapped 2 alt belts like that until I finally took the time to fix it and trust me you don't want to get stranded out in the middle of nowhere like I did.

 

[want_a_gsx]

it could also be that the belt is too loose. i had the same problem a couple weeks back, when the alt. belt was replaced.

on the right side of the alternator(by the pulleys and belts) is a long screw, maybe about
2-3 inches long. it is kinda slanted down but facing the radiator. just tighten up that screw and check that the belts are getting tighter. when you think its tight enough, turn the car on and see if the squeeking went away.

this is exactly what i did and now the noise is gone.

 

[TwoLiterLaser]

Improper tensioning can cause belts to squeal like this. A belt should be tight enough to be able to twist a little bit but not enough to be able to twist it 180 degrees. The alternator alignment could cause the squealing but I have never seen it. Is the alternator belt frayed on any edge? Be sure to check the tension on the power steering belt first since it has to be tensioned by hand. When I have to tension the power steering belt, I use a 22mm wrench as a pry bar to tension the belt while I tighten the bolts.

 

[Mitsu RacerX]

Had the same problem but I came to find out that the Damper/Crank pulley was coming apart which was not letting my belts line up.

 

[fourreGsixty3]

If the serpintine belt is too loose or too tight it will cause it to squeak, mine did this exact same thing for a couple days, and I was getting tired of the noise so I got on the gas hard, and snapped the belt. Lost PS, and battery died next day due to no belt, so have a local shop either tighten or loosen the belt a bit.
Hope I could help

Dustin

 

[TwoLiterLaser]

...battery died next day due to no belt...

How did your engine last that long without a water pump?

 

[fourreGsixty3]

How did you get water pump out of that by the way? The serpintine belt controls the alt and PS pump. It just stopped the alt from generating power during driving, and no PS. Water pump was fine, but I didnt drive it at all except from when it broke to my house(2 miles away) then 2 days later down to my family's auto shop.

 

[coreymh]

The belt is pretty tight, but maybe i over tightened. I think it might not be aligned right. I had a different alternator before and i could have sworn it was out of line and that belt snapped, and so i took it off and got a new belt and alternator.

 

[coreymh]

Ok i think i found the problem i was rinning the car and inspecting the belts. I think the tensioner pulley for the alternator wobbles. Any suggestions and where to get a pulley? Is there any type of upgrade for this?

 

[eklypse]

, i JUST fixed my belt yesterday and i had the same problem...are you using OEM belts...? i broke about three or four alt belts becuase they werent OEM, then i used OEM and they worked. when i put the belt on and started the car, it would still squeak a lil bit so what i did was i loosened the tensioner pulley and pushed the alternator forward to the bumpber till i couldnt move it anymore..started it up and no more squeaking..! now i gotta find out why my brand new oil is half way gone and is super black

 

[weith1111]

Ok i think i found the problem i was rinning the car and inspecting the belts. I think the tensioner pulley for the alternator wobbles. Any suggestions and where to get a pulley? Is there any type of upgrade for this?

If you have never replaced the crank pulley or are over 75k miles on it, I'd take a look at it to make sure it's not separating. It will wreak havoc on everything else, making belts squeel and pulleys to get out of whack. You may be fixing something on the surface, but dig a little deeper for the root of the problem. Good luck!

 

[Mitsu RacerX]

If you have never replaced the crank pulley or are over 75k miles on it, I'd take a look at it to make sure it's not separating. It will wreak havoc on everything else, making belts squeel and pulleys to get out of whack. You may be fixing something on the surface, but dig a little deeper for the root of the problem. Good luck!

Thank you WEITH sometimes is not just the belt..

 

[coreymh]

Could it be possible that it is the water pump about to go bad? I had read in another post that this guys waterpump had failed and he could see the pulley moving. I think in the previous reply i put the wrong pulley and it was the water pump pulley.

 

[gstspydr]

If you have never replaced the crank pulley or are over 75k miles on it, I'd take a look at it to make sure it's not separating. It will wreak havoc on everything else, making belts squeel and pulleys to get out of whack. You may be fixing something on the surface, but dig a little deeper for the root of the problem. Good luck!

This is very good advise. I caught my crank pulley seperating at 92k miles and I couldn't figure out why the aftermarket and then the mitsu dealer belts kept squeeling. It was very hard to determine what belt was making the noise for me though. I finally spotted the crank pulley and replaced it then reset the tension on the a/c and p/s belts and the sqeeel went away. Good luck as well.

 

[tallywacker]

Yeah those dampers are junk after they get some miles on them. If you hear a scratchy sounding sqweal at start up its the crank pulley. Ive been through 3. Make sure your PS pump isnt leaking because if it is or if you got PS fluid on the belts it will cause the belts to make noise.