How to change the serpentine belt

It is very inexpensive to replace a serpentine belt whether its broken or loose. Otherwise it will be difficult to slide on.

Step 3 Slide the belt off the tensioner pulley with your other hand and then relax the tensioner and remove the tool.

How to change the serpentine belt. To replace a serpentine belt start by locating the old belt at the front or side of your engine bay. Then use a wrench to relieve the auto tensioner so you can pull the belt off of the pulley system. Most of the serpentine-belt installations use a spring-loaded tensioner pulley that keeps a constant preload on the belt eliminating the need to adjust the tension.

Install the new belt. Replacing the serpentine belt is as simple as threading it into position cranking the tensioner and slipping the belt over the tensioner pulley or nearest pulley up top. Belt tensioners are mostly spring tension.

Once installed the spring retains pressure to the belt. Pull the wrench toward the front of the car to release the tension on the belt then carefully slide the old belt off of the power steering pump. Now you can take the wrench off the tensioner pulley and pull off the old belt.

Here is a quick comparison photo of the old and new belts side by side. This was definitely due for a change. Use the diagram to guide the new belt over each pulley.

Leave the tensioner for last. Its important to remember that theres only one correct way to put the serpentine belt on. In order to get it right the first time make sure to follow the diagram.

Serpentine Belt on a 67 Cummins. Locate the serpentine belt auto tensioner pulley using the diagram. The auto tensioner and its pulley is a spring-loaded device that keeps the serpentine belt tight.

Its pulley is usually smooth while the other pulleys are grooved. Grab the belt which should be hanging down below and wrap it around the drive shaft and AC pulley. Now this is where it gets a little harder.

Remove the belt from the steering pump at the top and wind it around the tensioner pully. To do this you must slip the belt between the pully and the big metal plate. As a serpentine belt gets older and wears down the rubber parts may peel off causing the belt to crack fray or slip.

When these things occur it may become misaligned or contaminated with fluid. There are various symptoms that may indicate your cars serpentine belt is wearing down including. The serpentine belt is held in constant tension allowing it to maintain its grip on the accessory pulleys by a belt tensioner.

The operation of replacing a serpentine belt is essentially pivoting the tensioner away and slipping the old belt off then positioning a new one in its place and releasing the tensioner. Step 1 Rotate tensioner to release belt tension The serpentine belt has tension applied to it by a spring-loaded tensioner that is attached to the engine itself. In order to remove the belt from the pulleys you will need to release this tension which will slacken the belt and allow you to remove it from the rest of the pulleys.

Your vehicles serpentine belt is one long winding belt that snakes around several pulleys and is usually visible at the front or on the side of the engine. In most modern vehicles it drives the air conditioning power steering water pump and alternator charging the battery and providing additional electrical power. The serpentinedrive belt on your car is a crucial consideration and it should be inspected at every maintenance interval every oil change.

The belt is in use every single time you start your engine and it is used for as long as the engine is running. As you can imagine that puts a lot of wear and tear on the belt. It is very inexpensive to replace a serpentine belt whether its broken or loose.

The replacement cost is only going to be between 100 and 200 in most cases. The belt itself will cost between 25 and 80 while the labor costs will probably be between 75 and 120. Taxes and fees will be added onto these prices too.

As mentioned previously proper tension is key to a serpentine belts performance and a spring-loaded or hydraulic automatic belt tensioner maintains that tension. This belt tensioner should be inspected along with the serpentine belt and considered for service or replacement at the same time. Changing a serpentine belt usually requires a long handle breaker bar or special tool to rotate the belt tensioner so the belt can be slipped off the pulleys.

If there is no belt routing decal under the hood which many cars lack your customer should snap a photo of the belt before it is removed with a phone camera or make a simple drawing of how it is routed. Climb under the front end with the serpentine belt tool. Move the serpentine belt tensioner pulley off the belt using the belt tool.

Step 3 Slide the belt off the tensioner pulley with your other hand and then relax the tensioner and remove the tool. Begin by routing the serpentine belt in the correct path around the pulleys. Make sure the last pulley you will be sliding the belt onto does not have raised edges.

Otherwise it will be difficult to slide on. The belt may need to be pulled with some force to make it slide onto the tensioner pulley.