alternator belt FROM HELL !

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ValerianMagnum

ValerianMagnum

the little car that could
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hi guys , since my friend changed my alternator , my belt screams like crazy in the morning when the engine is cold and even gives the tranny a hard time to shift for second speed , its scream as hard as the exhaust ! my belt looks loose , but it always ran since the last 6 years like that..and never screamed before we changed for the new alternator .... can it be too tightened or too loose ? or even can it be the pulley ? , since the last few days im putting a stuff to lubricate the belt , that i bought at canadian tire , work wells when i put it 5 minutes before heating it up in the morning but still, once i stop the car it will do it again , and its always , always at low speed, and the the engine is not heated up ..

your advices ? thx !

Joe
 
Wrong belt? Sure the alt was installed properly? How a out the pepper spacers used on the alt? Have seen the wrong spacer used and she the alt was tightened it clamped the alt too tight and the belt would slip on the pulley because the alt wasn't spining right.
 
Belt is to narrow and riding on the bottom of the V. Get a wider belt so it grips on the sides before bottoming. The V belts are not what they use to be . go to NAPA
 
I'd check belt tightness and pulley alignment. Also, where did you get the alternator from? Question it if you bought the cheapest Autozone one. However I still would think the mostly likely cause is somewhere with the belt setup.
 
Tighten the belt.
If it "looks" loose then it is.

Also know that it has nothing to do with shifting into second.
There are a lot of maybe this or maybe that but keep it simple first.

Tighten the belt.
 
Oldmanmopar said:
Belt is to narrow and riding on the bottom of the V. Get a wider belt so it grips on the sides before bottoming. The V belts are not what they use to be . go to NAPA
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You are correct sir! He can tighten it all he wants, but it will still scream until the sides of the belt are riding on the pulley and the bottom of the belt is off of it.:cheers:
 
68gtxman said:
You are correct sir! He can tighten it all he wants, but it will still scream until the sides of the belt are riding on the pulley and the bottom of the belt is off of it.:cheers:
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Xs3. If it has been screaming the belt has now likely lost a lot of the grip capabilities because it will be glazed from the heat.
 
He never said anything about the belt looking frayed, shredded, not touching the sides of the pulley or anything else like that.
He said his friend changed the alternator and now the belt squeals.
Don't friken overcomplicate things for no reason until it's necessary guys.

Yes, it even could have been a bad batch of rubber that got missed because it was Friday and everyone had a hangover because the boss had a party at his house and that bad batch of rubber causes problems with the coating on new pully's only from Autozone.

Jees, start with tightening the belt as described in the manual and IF it still squeals, THEN look into the other possibilities.
 
Oldmanmopar said:
Belt is to narrow and riding on the bottom of the V. Get a wider belt so it grips on the sides before bottoming. The V belts are not what they use to be . go to NAPA
Click to expand...

Yep.....belts are junk compared to what they used to be. Replaced the belt on our DD 18 months ago....think looks like it is 20 years old already....and it was a NAPA belt.....
 
Belt Life

The service life of a V-belt depends on mileage as well as load, tension and heat. Every time a belt passes around a pulley, it bends and flexes. This produces heat which age hardens the rubber over time. The wear process can be greatly accelerated if the belt is loose and slips because any added friction between belt and pulley makes the belt run even hotter. This can cause glazing on the faces of the belt and cause it to slip even more. So one of the most important factors that affects belt life is making sure it is properly tensioned when it is installed and that the proper tension is maintained throughout its service life.

Symptoms that may be the result of improper belt tension include:

Belt squeal, especially on the fan, A/C compressor or power steering drives.

A battery that keeps running down (due to belt slippage).

Excessive sidewall wear on a V-belt that causes it to ride lower than normal in the pulley grooves.

Severe cracking along the underside of a V-belt.

Noisy alternator, power steering pump, air pump, A/C compressor or water pump bearings (from excessive belt tension).

Belt Replacement

Replacement V-belts must be the same length and width as the original. A belt that's too long or too short may not allow enough adjustment for proper tension. A belt that's too wide or too narrow will not ride at the right depth in the pulley grooves.
 
I have a Chevy 1500 pickup that the belt screamed at me I tried replacing everything.Then I read someplace that the sqeal more than likely comes from the side of the belt and to spray it lightly or as needed with dry silicone.Haven't had a noise for 3 months and everything works as it should
 
What trailbeast is saying is start with the obvious/simple and go from there. The deflection is something like 1in? What others are saying is you need to have the exact same size and shape.
 
Louie70Dart said:
What trailbeast is saying is start with the obvious/simple and go from there. The deflection is something like 1in? What others are saying is you need to have the exact same size and shape.
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What TrailBeast is trying not to say, is that the OP didn't ask how much we know about belts, rubber, pully's and all the tech involved.
He said a friend changed his alternator and now the belt looks loose and it squeals at low RPM's.
He didn't ask what every possibility on the friken planet could be, or who knows the most about it.

New people need simple straight forward answers, not pages of discussion on it.

Now to the point, he said "changed the alt"
Not the belt, or the pulley's, or anything else.

AND he said the belt looks loose.

It aint rocket science, and it doesn't have to be made into rocket science.
Especially for a new person to mechanics.

He just needs to know that it squeals at lower RPM's because the belt is loose and slipping when the alternator is trying to replace the power used out of the battery after starting.
Tighten the belt until it can be pushed down about an inch midway between pulley's

If that does not do it,then a new belt may be in order.
 
If the belt rides below the edges of the edges on the pulley . Get a new belt.. I kept throwing a belt on my Duster at 8000 rpm. You should have heard it scream for help. I only drive the alternator . The belt was as tight as I could get it with a turn buckle. everything was new including a under drive pulley. I bought a wider belt. it even rides higher then the pulley edges. It stays on at over 9000.

Don't tell me my pulleys are out of alignment. It was due to the belt riding at the base and flexing from getting caught on the base of the pulley. It was a cheap *** belt from advanced. A new wider , stiffer gates belt fixed it.

Did any of you ever try and turn your alternator with the key on. Give it a try you will be amazed what the magnetic fields do. I was throwing mine with it turned off. So it wasn't from a low battery. And my belt alignment is perfect with the shortest belt I could use.
 

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do you guys know the size of a 360 alternator belt ? no a/c ,,plain jane regular like a 318 or 340 system .. 15 maybe ?
 
TrailBeast said:
He never said anything about the belt looking frayed, shredded, not touching the sides of the pulley or anything else like that.
He said his friend changed the alternator and now the belt squeals.
Don't friken overcomplicate things for no reason until it's necessary guys.

Yes, it even could have been a bad batch of rubber that got missed because it was Friday and everyone had a hangover because the boss had a party at his house and that bad batch of rubber causes problems with the coating on new pully's only from Autozone.

Jees, start with tightening the belt as described in the manual and IF it still squeals, THEN look into the other possibilities.
Click to expand...

the way I see it is he said the belt has been like this for 6 years, thats double the life of what it should run

if its loose and squealing; check alternator for alignment then replace belt, its only $15 and its piece of mind
 
66plyValiant said:
the way I see it is he said the belt has been like this for 6 years, thats double the life of what it should run

if its loose and squealing; check alternator for alignment then replace belt, its only $15 and its piece of mind
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"my belt looks loose , but it always ran since the last 6 years like that..and never screamed before we changed for the new alternator"

The way I see it is the way he said it. (he didn't say it was squealing for six years)
He very well could probably use a new belt, but that's not what he asked.
 
TrailBeast said:
"my belt looks loose , but it always ran since the last 6 years like that..and never screamed before we changed for the new alternator"

The way I see it is the way he said it. (he didn't say it was squealing for six years)
He very well could probably use a new belt, but that's not what he asked.
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He asked for advice so that is what everyone has been giving. yours differs from everyone else's but what does it matter. It isn't a pissing contest.

ValerianMagnum said:
hi guys , since my friend changed my alternator , my belt screams like crazy in the morning when the engine is cold and even gives the tranny a hard time to shift for second speed , its scream as hard as the exhaust ! my belt looks loose , but it always ran since the last 6 years like that..and never screamed before we changed for the new alternator .... can it be too tightened or too loose ? or even can it be the pulley ? , since the last few days im putting a stuff to lubricate the belt , that i bought at canadian tire , work wells when i put it 5 minutes before heating it up in the morning but still, once i stop the car it will do it again , and its always , always at low speed, and the the engine is not heated up ..

your advices ? thx !

Joe
Click to expand...



Squealing belts heat up and glaze so it is very likely compromised now and could fail. He has already been putting an additive on it so this now is an on going issue for a while. If this was fixed when it first started then it might have gone away. Now that it is an on going issue the belt could give up at any time. For such a cheap part why risk it? I have seen too many cars ruined by bad belts and I would definitely put a new one on it. This is my opinion for what it is worth.
 
I have had great luck with DAYCO belts. My 360 used to throw belts regularly when racing until I used a DAYCO. They are hard to find sometimes but worth the effort
 
Maybe the belt just squeals because the new alternator is actually generating electricity so the load on the belt is just enough to make noise. 'Course the belt is probably bad by now so just new belt and adjust properly. Fix the tranny first, or no new belt will be needed for a while.
 
The belt could be saved . Take a razor blade and cut little grooves into the beveled edges about 1/8 inch apart. Soak it in trans fluid for about one week. Apply a light film of axle grease and reinstall. This should stop the squeal.

If not,. You will have to grind angled grooves in all the pulleys with it running. so not to throw them out of balance.

Make sure you are wearing loose gloves , a necklace with a cross on, A wrist watch and a couple of rings. If done properly, using this method the squealing would be the least of your problems.

It is possible your fan blades are dull and not cutting through the air correctly. You may want to sharpen them before continuing with the above procedure.

If you need any more help we are here for you . Just yell or scream .
 
oldmanmopar said:
the belt could be saved . Take a razor blade and cut little grooves into the beveled edges about 1/8 inch apart. Soak it in trans fluid for about one week. Apply a light film of axle grease and reinstall. This should stop the squeal.

If not,. You will have to grind angled grooves in all the pulleys with it running. So not to throw the out of balance.

Make sure you are wearing loose gloves , a necklace with a cross on, a wrist watch and a couple of rings. If done properly, using this method the squealing would be the least of your problems.

It is possible your fan blades are dull and not cutting through the air correctly. You may want to sharpen them before continuing with the above procedure.

If you need any more help we are here for you . Just yell or scream .
Click to expand...

Funny :D
Really long hair works well also.
 
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