Hello,
My accessories(???) belt (the one with alternator, HP pump etc on it) is squealing. I've replaced the belt about a year ago and it looks fine but it squeals quite annoyingly when the car is idling. (makes it sound very cheap <img src=icon_smile_sad.gif border=0 align=middle> ) The moment I rev the engine, even a bit, it goes. And when I spray it lightly with WD40 it dissapears altogether for about a day. (No I'm not going to spray the belt every morning before leaving to work (no time anyway I'm always late))
Any ideas anyone?
Niek.
squealing belt
Moderator: RichardW
"The moment I rev the engine, even a bit, it goes. "
OK, stupid questions coming up. Is the tension correct? Too slack, and you'll get the classic fanbelt squeal whenever you pull away, but get it too tight and you might be doing the pump and alternator bearings in. Not good.
Was the belt a good make? And are the various pulleys clean and free of gunge?
I'd be inclined to change the belt again, frankly.
Mike
Edited by - MW on 22 Nov 2002 09:57:17
OK, stupid questions coming up. Is the tension correct? Too slack, and you'll get the classic fanbelt squeal whenever you pull away, but get it too tight and you might be doing the pump and alternator bearings in. Not good.
Was the belt a good make? And are the various pulleys clean and free of gunge?
I'd be inclined to change the belt again, frankly.
Mike
Edited by - MW on 22 Nov 2002 09:57:17
Hey Mike,
The tension of the belt is good, it's got an auto-tensioner pulley thingy on it (a pain to remove the belt because you have to push the pulley backwards with greater strength than the spring in the pulley...)
The belt looks fine, the only thing I could think of is that the alignment of one of the pulleys is slightly off.
I think I'll take it off again and have a look at the pulleys. Or maybe see if I can find a pulleys that is off centre...
Oh well keeps me off the street I guess
Niek.
The tension of the belt is good, it's got an auto-tensioner pulley thingy on it (a pain to remove the belt because you have to push the pulley backwards with greater strength than the spring in the pulley...)
The belt looks fine, the only thing I could think of is that the alignment of one of the pulleys is slightly off.
I think I'll take it off again and have a look at the pulleys. Or maybe see if I can find a pulleys that is off centre...
Oh well keeps me off the street I guess
Niek.
This one could be a little more sinister than first meets the eye.
I've had similar problems on two of my cars recently. On the BX 16V with air/con, the accessories belt is no longer available and as a result I have to use a slightly shorter belt which won't fit over the jockey wheel, hence it has changed the "pattern" of belt travel, so that instead of the belt (one of those flat 5 multi "V" types) touching a pulley for let's say 120 degrees, it only makes contact for 90. Result, under load, it can tend to slightly squeal.
On the other car, I was getting a squeal at idle & just above which went away when revved. This turned out to be the battery on the way out believe it or not. On initial start up, at idle, the battery would place a monster load on the alternator until enough revs were reached to cause the alternator to show it was in positive territory at which point the belt slippage stopped only to reappear once back to idle speed.
Another point of note is that if the belt and pulleys are becoming glazed, spraying with WD40 will temporarly quieten things but only a new belt and 'deglazing' the pulleys (with very fine wet 'n dry) will remove the noise permanently if the problem is not being caused by outside forces.
So if the other suggestions don't check out, there's a couple more to look at.
Alan S
Edited by - alans on 22 Nov 2002 19:15:14
I've had similar problems on two of my cars recently. On the BX 16V with air/con, the accessories belt is no longer available and as a result I have to use a slightly shorter belt which won't fit over the jockey wheel, hence it has changed the "pattern" of belt travel, so that instead of the belt (one of those flat 5 multi "V" types) touching a pulley for let's say 120 degrees, it only makes contact for 90. Result, under load, it can tend to slightly squeal.
On the other car, I was getting a squeal at idle & just above which went away when revved. This turned out to be the battery on the way out believe it or not. On initial start up, at idle, the battery would place a monster load on the alternator until enough revs were reached to cause the alternator to show it was in positive territory at which point the belt slippage stopped only to reappear once back to idle speed.
Another point of note is that if the belt and pulleys are becoming glazed, spraying with WD40 will temporarly quieten things but only a new belt and 'deglazing' the pulleys (with very fine wet 'n dry) will remove the noise permanently if the problem is not being caused by outside forces.
So if the other suggestions don't check out, there's a couple more to look at.
Alan S
Edited by - alans on 22 Nov 2002 19:15:14
<BLOCKQUOTE id=quote><font size=1 face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id=quote>quote:<hr height=1 noshade id=quote>
Hello,
My accessories(???) belt (the one with alternator, HP pump etc on it) is squealing. I've replaced the belt about a year ago and it looks fine but it squeals quite annoyingly when the car is idling. (makes it sound very cheap <img src=icon_smile_sad.gif border=0 align=middle> ) The moment I rev the engine, even a bit, it goes. And when I spray it lightly with WD40 it dissapears altogether for about a day. (No I'm not going to spray the belt every morning before leaving to work (no time anyway I'm always late))
Any ideas anyone?
Niek.
It sounds like the tension pulley needs replacing.
<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>
R.A.FOSTER
Hello,
My accessories(???) belt (the one with alternator, HP pump etc on it) is squealing. I've replaced the belt about a year ago and it looks fine but it squeals quite annoyingly when the car is idling. (makes it sound very cheap <img src=icon_smile_sad.gif border=0 align=middle> ) The moment I rev the engine, even a bit, it goes. And when I spray it lightly with WD40 it dissapears altogether for about a day. (No I'm not going to spray the belt every morning before leaving to work (no time anyway I'm always late))
Any ideas anyone?
Niek.
It sounds like the tension pulley needs replacing.
<hr height=1 noshade id=quote></BLOCKQUOTE id=quote></font id=quote><font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" size=2 id=quote>
R.A.FOSTER
-
shaunthesheep
- Posts: 364
- Joined: 16 Jul 2002, 14:42
- Location: United Kingdom
- My Cars:
mine has also started to squeal in the mornings, it might be casued by the belt being too loose, as i did find a loose bolt on one of the supporting brackets for the alternator, tighted it back up, but since then the belt has been squealing.
how do i check the tension of the belt?
if tighting is needed, how do i do it?
dom
how do i check the tension of the belt?
if tighting is needed, how do i do it?
dom
Rule of thumb is "you should be able to twist the belt 90 Degrees at it's longest rum".I would prefer my belt to be on the loose side,rather than too tight.If it is too tight it can damage bearings on the pulleys.WD40 is not the best to apply to a belt. I use Holts Rubber & Nylon lubricant,it is recommended for use on rubber.
If the belt is squealing then there can only be 2 reasons; Too loose, as is covered so far, or a driven component has too much resistance. Have you removed the belt and checked that everything turns freely? Alternator bearings could be a problem. Once the belt has started slipping and has glazed itself it will only get worse. A toothed belt is always easier to turn than a solid one (not that anyone would use an old fashioned solid one on a Citroen would they?). What ever you do, do not use WD40 on a belt that relies on friction to turn other components! This hides the defect and can affect the rubber of the belt.
Bob T
Bob T