Power steering died and then...

[stealth13]

So I was going around a corner and I hear a noise, then all the sudden no power steering. Drove it home and the belt that right besides the alternator belt is really lose (like 3 inches off the track)

NOW the battery light is on for some reason? What does this mean? I just got a new alternator and battery in the last few weeks.

Also the car decided it should idle at 1500 rpm since this happened.

 

[Cassanova122407]

Tighten belts as they obviously came loose.

 

[cbower]

be careful if your belts are loose or broke especially since your battery light came on. this means your alternator is running and if im not mistaken this is the same pulley as the water pump... did your temp go up?

 

[stealth13]

No I was almost home when it happened. Does the alternator belt connected to the power steering belt in some way? I'm confused as to why the power steering went at the same time

 

[Abe'sGST]

since your belt is loose and it runs both the alternator and power steering pump your alternator will not work properly nor your power steering

 

[stealth13]

Oh so it is for sure the same belt? That makes sense then. I had the alternator replaced a few weeks ago and the guy did the belt too, must have done a bad job..

 

[shift2drift38]

Yea get those relooked at. Primarily the tensioner. That belt is indeed connected to your power steering, Altenator, and water pump. If you see your battery light come on like that it means your battery is dead, and the Alt. is the only thing running your car at that point.

Hope it gets fixed right this time Good luck!

 

[jmartinez1228]

Oh so it is for sure the same belt? That makes sense then. I had the alternator replaced a few weeks ago and the guy did the belt too, must have done a bad job..

Just because the belt came loose doesnt necessarily mean the mechanic did a bad job, it could have been a crappy belt or the adjustment nut just came loose. It has happened to me more then once, i put a little loctite to keep it from coming loose.

If it is still that loose then you definitely shouldnt be driving the car because like everyone said that belt runs you water pump, no water pump running means no coolant being circulated which means your car is going to heat up very quickly. Call the shop that did the work and let them know what happened. In some cases if the shop is legit and reputable they will send a tow truck over to pickup your car and take care of the issue. Good luck with that bro.

 

[stealth13]

The guy says to charge the battery and drive it over... It's a half hour drive and will probably overheat then.. What should I do

 

[jmartinez1228]

The guy says to charge the battery and drive it over... It's a half hour drive and will probably overheat then.. What should I do

DON'T DO IT. You will regret it.

 

[bryanwheat]

It literally takes 5 minutes to look and tighten the belt. Just do it yourself.

 

[stealth13]

I woulda done the alternator myself if it wasn't so cold

I got the belt back on and tightened it back up, drove it around and it was good with no squeeling, then I drove it to work this morning and it came loose again!! Any suggestions? I was sure we tightened the 3 nuts properly and the slack in the belt was just enough to turn it 90 degrees.

 

[Cassanova122407]

tighten again and bring back to the mechanic to help see what is goin on you dont want to do to much in there for the liability factor with said mechanic

 

[cbower]

i think shift had it backwards. if your belt is loose and your battery light is on, your altenator is not working and only your battery is powering you at that.. i had my belts break, drove it about a half of a mile because i thought it was only the power steering. next thing you know battery light comes on and water temp starts creeping. just be sure to be watching the temp gauge while your still having the issues or driving back to the mechanic, dont need any bigger issues.