alternator belt shredding [Merged 6-8] shedding falling off squeal noise thrown

[marksae]

Alright.. i've gone through some hell w/ my alternator belt on my 1g. Ever since I removed my AC belt, my alternator belt has flown off 3 times, and I've shredded 2 of them. If i leave it too loose, it flies off. If I tighten it too much, the belt shreds. I'll check my pulleys to make sure they're all lined up and aren't dinged up. Will overtightening this belt cause it to shred?

As this amalgamation of threads shows, the usual causes of alternator belt troubles are:
1. Failed harmonic balancer.
2. Bent pulleys.
3. Pulleys put on backward.

 

[gregmondro]

its a brand new alternator aswell

i've already gone through 4 of em. (gotta love autozone lifetime warranties)

the battery is no older than 6 months.

 

[thegame]

Well if your sure the belt is ok, and its not any other bealts or pulleys makin the noise then I would still have the altenator taken in and tested. I was warned when I got my first Dsm that the car would eat through altenators, so far only 1 has died so far for me. Good Luck, I hope you figure it out.

 

[Aarontsiawd]

My '93 Talon Tsi was running OK, not great, but OK. It started having an occasional power loss when under hard throttle and I couldn't pinpoint the problem since it wouldn't do it consistently. Then, my alternator/water pump belt shredded and left me stranded on the highway but I managed to limp it home with a series of driving, stopping and waiting it to cool, and driving. The temp gauage never reached the red zone, BTW. I changed the belt, but now, I have a high idle (about 1800 - 2800 rpm) when first started and after it warms up, the idle surges from 1200 - 2000. Before the belt shredding, it idled perfectly and even when started in below zero weather, didn't have as fast an idle as it does now.
What could the pieces of shredded belt flying around affected to cause this? Could a ruined alternator cause odd idling problems? Thanks in advance for any suggestions.
Aaron

 

[mitsutuner]

My first guess is that your problems are not related.
one remote possibility is this, if you didn't disconnect your battery before working around your alternater, there is a chance you may have shorted 1 of the electrical connectoers to ground, creating a surge that burned 1 of the coils in your Idle Speed Control motor or even damaged your ECU.
It's also remotely possible that a piece of belt flew up & knocked the rubber cap off you BISS screw housing & the O-ring around the BISS screw is not airtight.
I can't really see any relationship between the 2 problems, not that I know everything.
anyway, right now you want to diagnose your surging idle & see what you have.
Idle surge is a common problem & much has been written about it, go here for more info.
http://dsm.org/menu.epl?item=35

 

[Beato23]

heard this is a common issue, but whats the easiest way to stop your alternator belt from squeling everytime its cold out, or hasn't been started in a while?

 

[ryanman]

Umm, tighten it up.

 

[tylerk]

Turn up the radio.

Seriously, you can tighten the belts and it will probably help a bit, but as far as I've been able to tell there's no good and permanent fix.

 

[luv2rallye]

Try a new belt that is the proper width and depth and tighten properly. It should not squeel even when cold.

 

[tylerk]

The problem is that these belts, ESPECIALLY the alt belt, refuse to STAY tightened. At least that's been my experience.

 

[marcmsj]

i had the same problem after installing a new alternator belt. had to tighten it twice before it actually stopped making noise.

 

[Passion 4 Speed]

i allways find my self tighting my alternator belt like once every 2-3 weeks especially more often since its cold. And my belts are all new jus keep tighting it, but not too tight cause i heard that its not good for your waterpump and alt, puts a strain on it or sumthing..
Try belt dressing that helps, jus dont put a lot cause it can get messy.

 

[dbdh95et]

Alot of DSM owners are having this loud squeek noise coming from the engine bay, and I already know that is the alternantor belt, but can someone teach this new DSMer how to TIGHTEN UP THE ALTERNATOR BELT PLEASE!! SOME STEPS AND PICS WILL BE HIGHLY APPRECIATE IT!!!

 

[shoddywood]

there are two bolts on the bracket holding the alt to the engine.loosen the one that threads into the small triangular peice,then tighten up the long bolt that points back towards the engine block.(i lived with the sqeak for awhile until learning i had to loosen the triangular peice. i thought thats as tight as i could get the belt.)sorry i have no pics.

 

[Black91TSiAWD]

They're both 12mm If I remember correctly, it's real easy.

 

[oldman]

You should really get a service manual.

 

[2gtalonman]

I have a unorthidox pully system kit on my car all the pullys are aftermarket and the belt to the alternator keeps gettin eatin then starts to slip, Resulting in the car not keeping a charge any way to fix this (yes im useing a smaller belt than stocl)

thanks

 

[luv2rallye]

All pulleys "line up"? Alt. belt proper width for pulley used (it should not bottom out)? Harmonic balancer separating?

 

[2gtalonman]

I dont know ifits balanced I brought it to sa mechanic and you put them on

 

[Infinity]

I uggh, don't think there's any harmonic balancer presence on the crank pulley for aftermarket pulleys. My stock crank pulley was eating belts left and right, talk about frightening when your alternator belt goes out on the interstate and you lose virtually all braking and steering on the highway, oh yeah, lots of fun. Most likely your crank pulley is eating belts. Keep it stock, there isn't much to gain from these aftermarket pulleys.

 

[doug]

My stock crank pulley was eating belts left and right, talk about frightening when your alternator belt goes out on the interstate and you lose virtually all braking and steering on the highway

there isn't much to gain from these aftermarket pulleys.

That's a pretty big gain right there, if you ask me-- no chance of pulley separation.

 

[oldman]

Umm...Not enough to be messing with the crank IMO.

 

[doug]

Many people totally agree with you on that point, but I'm not one of them...yet. Right now I'm still of the opinion that a mostly theoretical chance of crank damage isn't enough to counteract an almost definite real world chance of pulley separation. Maybe I'll regret that one day, I don't know. So far I haven't.

 

[oldman]

I would much rather deal with a seperated pulley than a rebuilt bottom end (um...not a bad excuse for a rebuilt). I do realize no had reported crank damage due to this (directly anyway), the fact that theoretically it could happen is enough to keep me away. The best is to spend $350 for an underdrive with damper built in.

Back to the poster, inspect them while the car is on, make sure everything lines up.

 

[Defiant]

Many people totally agree with you on that point, but I'm not one of them...yet. Right now I'm still of the opinion that a mostly theoretical chance of crank damage isn't enough to counteract an almost definite real world chance of pulley separation. Maybe I'll regret that one day, I don't know. So far I haven't.

Well, a stock harmonic balancer seems to be good for about a decade. I don't know if, nor to what if any extent, a non-damped crankshaft will do damage to the main bearings in that amount of time. Still and all, your choice.

 

[doug]

talonman, does the belt slip before it starts to get eaten or only after? It's hard sometimes to keep that belt tight-- I've lost a couple because they weren't tight enough at first and were slipping, therefore weakening them.