1G Help - how to stop alternator squeal?

[Lancer_lover]

Hello i have this annoying problem my car squeall att start up and it is annoying bought a gates belt and it went quiet but after 4 or 5 monts in winter rest it squealls again at start up and i have tighten it so how do i solve it!!

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[luv2rallye]

Make sure the belt is the proper width and depth (doesn't bottom out touching the bottom of the pulley groove). Then tension it properly.
See:

https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/NBGKR1

and

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[Lancer_lover]

Ok im gonna try it out thanks

 

[pauleyman]

Have you checked your harmonic balancer?

 

[1990TSIAWDTALON]

And make sure pulleys all align!

 

[Lancer_lover]

Have you checked your harmonic balancer?

Yes i bought a brand new one

And make sure pulleys all align!

Yea everything is in place, and non of them makes a sound or has play in them

 

[BLACK'98DSM]

Does the 1g have the same tensioner pulley? That bearing might be bad and the tensioner pulley could need replacement. Eventually they run out of grease and chirp when cold.

 

[Lancer_lover]

Does the 1g have the same tensioner pulley? That bearing might be bad and the tensioner pulley could need replacement. Eventually they run out of grease and chirp when cold

I gonna test that put tp just load up on stuff i can try have nothing else to do haha

 

[Lancer_lover]

Hello again it is fixed now! The tensioner bolt got loose and the belt started to squeal at statup and i have tighten it and loctite! No more squeal, belt name is Gates good stuff hopefully it will not do it again

 

[AWD-Tony]

Hello again it is fixed now! The tensioner bolt got loose and the belt started to squeal at statup and i have tighten it and loctite! No more squeal, belt name is Gates good stuff hopefully it will not do it again

Glad you got it fixed. You don't need to loctite those bolts btw.

 

[Lancer_lover]

Glad you got it fixed. You don't need to loctite those bolts btw.

Rather be safe than sorry i am really tired of hearing that squeall

 

[Mech Addict]

I have the same issue. Worse when cold, and only at start-up for a minute or two. I suspect it is actually the p/s belt, which doesn't have a tensioner, per se, but I use a hammer handle to pry it for tension. Sometimes I can get it to quite for a few weeks, but it comes back. The crappy belts that came on the car when I bought it never did this. Any explanation, other than Loose?

 

[We're on Boost]

I have the same issue. Worse when cold, and only at start-up for a minute or two. I suspect it is actually the p/s belt, which doesn't have a tensioner, per se, but I use a hammer handle to pry it for tension. Sometimes I can get it to quite for a few weeks, but it comes back. The crappy belts that came on the car when I bought it never did this. Any explanation, other than Loose?

Now there's something I never thought of. I've been buying the most expensive belts figuring they would be the best. Goodyear Gatorback, and Gates, whatever their fancy one is called. My problem with it is the same. Maybe I should try the crappiest cheapest belt I can find new.
Because I'm pretty sure I never had this problem until about 2014 or so. I thought my power steering pump must be going out and that's why I have an "extra" power steering pump. My water pump and alternator are both new since then too.
On mine it is the 4 groove micro-V type belt that is chirping. What I've been doing is shooting the lower run of that belt with "303 Aerospace Protectant" from above before each cold start. It works but only for about 1 or 2 cold starts, and I have a long narrow sheet of cardboard that I shove underneath every time to keep the overspray off the garage floor. Doing that I don't have to run the belt either too tight or too loose. But I still think it sucks.
That 4-groove belt runs water pump, alternator, and PS pump and I think it is just too much. They probably would have put a wider belt in that position (the designers) if there had been more room. But I'm going to look for a crappy belt at some point, to try out there.

My 1990 Toyota Corolla 1600cc has a 5-groove belt doing the same function that the 4-groove belt does on our cars. Plus, on that car the PS pump belt and alternator belts are opposed, pulling in opposite directions, so you can tighten those belts plenty tight without fear of putting too much side load on the water pump bearings. On our cars those things are kind of pulling in the same direction.
The Toyota belts are set and forget, they last practically forever and never chirp. That's how it should be.

For whatever it's worth, I'm noticing that the belts on my Toyota are Dayco Poly Rib belts, which are not cheap belts.

 

[pauleyman]

Crap on the pulleys?

 

[Mech Addict]

I removed mine when I did the T-belt, and wire-brushed them. I painted the sides of the pulleys, but not the working surfaces, thinking that would actually cause issues. Anybody try one of those fancy belt tension gauges? I've looked into them, but cant find one for sale that reads in the range that the FSM indicates is spec for the car. There is the deflection spec for so many pounds of force, but that is also kind of hard to do without three hands and a small spring scale. Never had this kind of issue with belts before. Applying talc is one approach to silencing belts, but I have to think that only works until it gets wet one time.

The squeal doesn't even both me, but I feel like I'm "that guy" when I start it on a cold early morning. It also gives my wife another thing to not like about the car, which is not helping.

 

[chrisman287]

I have this same issue I believe it's my alternator belt. My son had dropped a bolt into the timing cover (didn't have the top cover at the time) and I took it all apart to get it out.

When I put it back together, I noticed that the bolt on top of the alternator tensioner doesn't ever get tight it just spins and spins. I thought about putting a nut to lock it (if possible) but I think I have to replace the alternator anyway so I'll wait until I put the new one in and see what it does.

 

[Lancer_lover]

Hello again.. after i replaced my alternator belt i have got this shirping sound att Idle when cold ? And continues until it is at operating temp ? So any Guess is going on

 

[AWD-Tony]

Look at all the pulleys and see if there’s any left over rubber on them. If so get it off with a pick or flat head and make sure all belts are tensioned correctly. While you have the belt off, start the engine cold to make sure it’s not the p/s or ac belt.

 

[luv2rallye]

Another possibility of belt squeal is if the belt isn't the correct width which is a common problem. If the width is too narrow the belt's bottom will be riding in the pulley's bottom groove and will squeal no matter what the tension. The belt must be tight against the vertical walls of the groove and not touch the bottom.

 

[steve]

Lots of good input so far. Let's not forget that the harmonic dampener (Crank Pulley) is known to separate between the inner and outer rings and make noise before it falls apart and takes out the timing cover and belt..

 

[Lancer_lover]

Lots of good input so far. Let's not forget that the harmonic dampener (Crank Pulley) is known to separate between the inner and outer rings and make noise before it falls apart and takes out the timing cover and belt..

Crank pulley is brand new i am gonna check everything u guys Said and report back video maybe if that is better

 

[Lancer_lover]

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[AWD-Tony]

That sounds like a bearing noise to me. Have you tried removing each belts and starting it?

 

[luv2rallye]

^ Agree. Possibly the water pump. Remove belts one at a time to isolate.

 

[XC92]

Could installing a belt too tight cause the pulley to slip on startup and glaze the inner surface of the belt, making it harder for it to grip the belt even if the tension is then adjusted properly, basically ruining the belt?

As for belt squeal, don't do what I did and keep putting it off. In my case it was the alt/wp belt and it snapped off, stranding me and forcing me to get towed. I'd already purchased a new belt but didn't have it with me (mistake #2, there were others), as I could have installed it in minutes and been on my way.