squealing belts
squealing belts
Postmaster
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 2,544
Likes: 2
From: okc
my power steering belt does that at high rpms, ive replaced the belt numerous times and tightened it so tight i was afraid of damaging the water pump bearings....basically all i did was put another new belt on it, tighten it till there is only about a 1/2" of slack, and put some belt dressing on it from the parts store.....its not as bad now, under normal driving i never hear it, but when im racing someone it will squeal at around 4500 rpms, i just make sure the belt is in good shape and only bring the rpms up that high occasionaly...... just remember, if you loose power steering suddenly, youve also lost your water pump as well..........
Freshman User
Joined: Mar 2005
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A squealing belt can certainly be the sound of impending doom. I once had the tensioner pulley on the airconditioner belt lock up, talk about squeal? Man, was it ever loud! So a squealing belt can be the sign of excessive friction between the belt and a pulley. I can certainly see the shaft bearings in a water pump, power steering pump, or alternator failing and causing the pulley to drag against the belt and squeal. It can also be the sign of glazed and worn belts. Of course, glazing can be caused by excessive drag against a pulley.
New User
Joined: Mar 2005
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My belts squeal a slow speed 5-10 mph I changed the serpintine belt and still squeals. I suspect the PS pump. How free should the pulley be on the PS pump? thanks do I have to change the pump or can i just grease some bearings?
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Freshman User
Joined: Mar 2005
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My experience was on an old Torino, but on that car there was nothing to grease on the alternator, water pump, air conditioner, or power steering pump. Generally speaking, the bearings are lubricated and sealed at the factory, when they wear out, they are just simply gone and you either rebuild the belt driven component yourself or go out and buy another one.
Speaking of such things, after three failed rebuilt alternators I learned how to buy a rebuild kit and do it myself. Ended up with an alternator that cranked out out more amps and was extremely reliable.
Speaking of such things, after three failed rebuilt alternators I learned how to buy a rebuild kit and do it myself. Ended up with an alternator that cranked out out more amps and was extremely reliable.
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Postmaster
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 2,544
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From: okc
Originally Posted by troyski76
My belts squeal a slow speed 5-10 mph I changed the serpintine belt and still squeals. I suspect the PS pump. How free should the pulley be on the PS pump? thanks do I have to change the pump or can i just grease some bearings?
Posting Guru
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 1,635
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From: Niceville, FL.
Had this problem on a '67 Ranchero with small V8. Couldn't stop the squeal at high RPM with new belts, dressing, overtightening belts, etc. Replaced the alternator pully with a 1" larger diameter pully and never again had a problem.
Piffery1
Piffery1
New User
Joined: Apr 2004
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If everything is stock on your engine then you can safely assume the vehicle left the factory with the belts quiet. So how to get them quiet?
Take off the belts and throw them away. No matter how old they are they will not get quiet again no matter how much you clean them. Get some spray brake cleaner and a small wire brush and clean all the engine and accessory pulleys thoroughly. Get down in the grooves and get all the gunk out. Next check the pulley runouts...are they running true? Check the belt tensioner....is it sloppy? Replace it if it is. Then get new good quality belts and install them. NEVER use belt dressing. It will only solve the problem temporarily and cause you more squeeling problems because it pics up road contaminants and forms more gunk on the pulleys.
Take off the belts and throw them away. No matter how old they are they will not get quiet again no matter how much you clean them. Get some spray brake cleaner and a small wire brush and clean all the engine and accessory pulleys thoroughly. Get down in the grooves and get all the gunk out. Next check the pulley runouts...are they running true? Check the belt tensioner....is it sloppy? Replace it if it is. Then get new good quality belts and install them. NEVER use belt dressing. It will only solve the problem temporarily and cause you more squeeling problems because it pics up road contaminants and forms more gunk on the pulleys.
Posting Guru
Joined: Jun 2004
Posts: 1,635
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From: Niceville, FL.
Ken,
My '67 Ranchero (bought new) would usually go 2500 to 3500 miles on an alternator belt before squealing started. Usually started when downshifting into "passing gear" at highway speeds, then get progressively worse with time. Belts replaced by dealer mechanics 3 times under warranty with explanation "lots of them do that". I think it was a design problem. I'm pretty sure later year Fairlanes and Falcons used two alternator belts. I wouldn't assume everything that comes from the factory is ok; look at how many recalls and service bulletins come out every year.
I throughly agree with your maintenance recommendations. I've had two serpentine belt tensioner spring failures (one broken, one weak) that caused squeals.
Piffery1
My '67 Ranchero (bought new) would usually go 2500 to 3500 miles on an alternator belt before squealing started. Usually started when downshifting into "passing gear" at highway speeds, then get progressively worse with time. Belts replaced by dealer mechanics 3 times under warranty with explanation "lots of them do that". I think it was a design problem. I'm pretty sure later year Fairlanes and Falcons used two alternator belts. I wouldn't assume everything that comes from the factory is ok; look at how many recalls and service bulletins come out every year.
I throughly agree with your maintenance recommendations. I've had two serpentine belt tensioner spring failures (one broken, one weak) that caused squeals.
Piffery1