squealing belt

[bizzotalon701]

there is a squeal that happens eveytime i start my car. i've changed my alternator belt already and it helped it for a little while but then it came back and im thinking i may have over tightened the belt. when i start it it squeals for about 3 seconds or so and then stops and doesn't usually do it again until my cars been cold for a few hours i checked the tension and it seems to be tight enough although i dont have the right tools to check that. can anyone help me?? o i was also thinking about changing my alternator but the cheapest one ive found was 180 and cant afford that right not and dont want to if i dont need to. thanks guys

 

[spinninfwdlaser]

Might be over tensioned. You can quite it down with using tire shine, but is just a temporary fix for a squeel.

 

[bizzotalon701]

yea well i would rather not temporarely fix id want it permanent

 

[tbonitz301]

Dude check your crank pulley. They have a tendency to come apart after a while

 

[kenamond]

Dude check your crank pulley. They have a tendency to come apart after a while

+1. Also known as a harmonic balancer. If you think the squealing shouldn't be happening, I'd suspect the balancer. It's not too hard to change (so I've heard). 4 bolts to take it off the crank. The rubber that connects the inside part to the outside part separates, and the outside part will start to walk toward or away from the motor. DSMs go through harmonic balancers faster than Micheal Moore goes through hotdogs.

 

[luv2rallye]

^yep. They're pricey but they do separate and you then have no choice but replacement: http://www.dsmtuners.com/forums/art...lace-your-crank-pulley-harmonic-balancer.html

 

[Polyol]

http://shop.undermycar.com/product.sc?categoryId=60&productId=949 Harmonic balancer $64.95 Shipped

 

[knochgoon24]

Are you sure you replaced the right belt? Why didn't you just change all three while you were at it?

As for checking the tension, you should grab the belt between the pulleys and try to twist it 90*. It shouldn't go that 90* without exessive force.

Try to hit your altenator pulley with some sandpaper, it might be glazed.
See, belts natrually slip when a load is suddenly applied to them, it helps absorb shock. This slipping gradually shines the belts and the pulleys. The sandpaper give you some grip back.

 

[bacalhau16]

never heard of the sandpaper idea, but it makes sense. I would check other belts as mentioned.

 

[Boost92awd]

How do you know its your alternator belt that is squeeling? Why didnt you change the other belt also? Let your car shit for awhile so it gets cold so it will squeel again. Now have someone start your car while you stand in front of the car. Start the car and when it starts squeeling, spray the belts one at a time with wd-40. This will pin point which belt is the one that is actaully squeeling. The wd-40 will make the belt stop squeeling, but this is only a temperary fix also, but will atleast pin point which belt is squeeking.

 

[bizzotalon701]

ok first of all my car is a 5 speed so it doesn't have a harmonic balancer. second i changed the alternator belt because i knew it was the alternator squealing at first because it would squeal a lot at start up because the alternator was kicking in and would squeal until it was satisfied now it squeals for only a short period of a time after sitting for a while but when it has sat for only a couple of hours it squeals a lot more. i tried some of the stuff other people have mentioned like turning the ac on or off when the squealing is happening and that didn't do anything. it could be the other belt that i didn't change, i had the timing belt changed at 50000 miles(64000 now), but i cant figure it out. it could also be the crank separating but how would i know??? also it seems like the power steering pump is leaking be where it sits, off to the side, theres is some liquid there

 

[rich3389]

Uh, transmission type makes no difference in this, your car came with a harmonic balancer.

 

[Boost92awd]

Uh, transmission type makes no difference in this, your car came with a harmonic balancer.

Damn you beat me to it.

 

[bizzotalon701]

so then the harmonic balancer is the crank pulley??

 

[rich3389]

Yes.

 

[bizzotalon701]

ok so then how could i distinguish that as the problem rather then just a bad belt?? try the wd-40 thing??

 

[soldave]

Mine's done that a couple of times recently. In addition, there has been a squealing for a few seconds if the a/c is turned on while the engine is cold and at idle. A few people have said the a/c belt probably needs replacing, but I've heard it's a bi*** to get to.

 

[bizzotalon701]

so ultimately im looking at at least replacing something whether its a crank pulley or a belt right??

 

[Boost92awd]

so ultimately im looking at at least replacing something whether its a crank pulley or a belt right??

Yes, start with the belt. It wouldnt hurt to replace it anyways and there only like $15.

 

[bizzotalon701]

so u think it would be worth it to replace the other belt because i already replaced the alternator belt

 

[Boost92awd]

so u think it would be worth it to replace the other belt because i already replaced the alternator belt

How old is the other belt? How many miles?

 

[turboglenn]

Dude check your crank pulley. They have a tendency to come apart after a while

+3 .... Mine was squeeling something fierce, so i checked all the belts and they were tight enough. Then i looked at the motor while it was running to get to the source and i saw my crank pully walking in and out. I pulled the pully off and it fell into 2 pieces as soon as it was off. So look for the pully to be walking in and out. Especially when cold, because after it squeels for a good bit, that rubber will get hot and grip, then it will stop for a bit.

 

[knochgoon24]

The accessory belts aren't as bad to change as everyone makes them out to be. I changed all 3 in about an hour, hour and a half. It really really helps if you have someone else there to help.

 

[Dsm2nr89]

Have you also checked to see if maybe your ac belt is loose or wearing ? I have a friend down the block with a 97 tsi awd that has the same squeal problem and it's his ac belt. Before you go changing your alternator take it to a shop and have them test the alternator to see the voltage reading. Should not read less than 14v. Mine checked in i think at 14.2 when i tested it.

 

[bizzotalon701]

as far as i kno the ac belt is stil the factory oe belt. now when u guys are talking about 3 belts whats the other one??