power steering gone,belt still there and spins freely

[STI2TALON]

My power steering went out last night and the radiator, brake, and battery lights came on. There is no belt on the alternator so Im guessing it snapped. When the engine is on, the power steering pulley and belt system does not move at all so Im guessing the keyway got worn down or snapped. Any thoughts? What do I have to do to replace these belts because it seems like a tough job accessing all the pulleys. thanks

 

[19Eclipse90]

The power steering belt runs to the water pump pulley ONLY. The water pump itself is run off the same belt as the alternator. So if you lose your alternator belt, your power steering won't work. If you are cheap, you probably want to only replace the alternator belt. But if you are thorough, you might want to look into doing all belts (including timing belt, balance shaft belt, and hydraulic tensioner) and water pump. As the accessory belts are not as vital as the timing belts, they are supposed to be changed at the same interval as a timing belt. If one snapped on you and you cannot rule out overtensioning on the belt, AND you are unsure when the timing belt was last done, do it all. I hope you didn't drive too much after that. Riding without a waterpump is dangerous for the motor.

 

[timot]

+1 for the above, however replacing the accessory belts is easier than it looks. remove the drivers side front wheel and all the splash guards, the tensions is on the alternator i think it is a 12mm screw, loosen it to remove the faulty belt and replace it. The power steering belt is removed by loosing the bolts on the pump, there are two which you will have to turn the pulley to get at through the holes in the pulley.

 

[laserspeeddemon]

The power steering belt runs to the water pump pulley ONLY. The water pump itself is run off the same belt as the alternator. So if you lose your alternator belt, your power steering won't work. If you are cheap, you probably want to only replace the alternator belt. But if you are thorough, you might want to look into doing all belts (including timing belt, balance shaft belt, and hydraulic tensioner) and water pump. As the accessory belts are not as vital as the timing belts, they are supposed to be changed at the same interval as a timing belt. If one snapped on you and you cannot rule out overtensioning on the belt, AND you are unsure when the timing belt was last done, do it all. I hope you didn't drive too much after that. Riding without a waterpump is dangerous for the motor.

Thats a little excessive. Depending on the milage of the car, he may have no need to do a full timing belt job.

The alternator belt is the most accessible and the easiest one to put on. I suggest just replacing what you lost and driving on.

 

[19Eclipse90]

Thats a little excessive. Depending on the milage of the car, he may have no need to do a full timing belt job.

The alternator belt is the most accessible and the easiest one to put on. I suggest just replacing what you lost and driving on.

Preventive maintanence is never excessive. I personally never trust a belt I am not sure about. Of course, that is my suggestion, he can do what he wants.

 

[boostcrazyawd]

yes i would say if your gonna change one belt you mite as well get all the accesory belts, and the t belt depeneding on when it was done last. i agree preventive maintenace is critcal on our dsm's.

 

[laserspeeddemon]

Preventive maintanence is never excessive. I personally never trust a belt I am not sure about. Of course, that is my suggestion, he can do what he wants.

Yes it can be. If you are unsure of the belts condition and the milage is in that area then yes, change the T-belt. A full t-belt job can cost around $200 alone for parts and up to $500 with labor.

 

[19Eclipse90]

Yes it can be. If you are unsure of the belts condition and the milage is in that area then yes, change the T-belt. A full t-belt job can cost around $200 alone for parts and up to $500 with labor.

As opposed to the costs of $600+ for a fresh head alone, new pistons if necessary, on top of that a full timing belt job, and labor to do all that work? You'd be looking at least a couple grand for it all.
To each his own; I'll stick to my preventive maintenance costs.