alternator belt needs replacement

[cwaitt11]

so i was fishing around in my car today cuz i heard a loud squeaking noise...i felt my alternator belt and it was loose and dry and beat up. To replace it, is it easy to do on my own? or would it be easier to take it somewhere? and wat would i have to do to replace it on my own?

 

[bgibb68]

get both belts from anywhere <$40. there are mounting bolts and tension bolts on the alt and the power steering units, loosen them. take old ones off put new ones on and then tighten the tension till the belt is tight. then the mounting bolts. takes about an hour. real easy if you jack the car up and have someone under the car and one working from the top. if the belt still squeels not tight enough just tighten a lil bit more

 

[cwaitt11]

when you say both belts...wat do you mean?

 

[bgibb68]

there are 2 belts: one goes to the alt and water pump(inside/bottom belt) and one goes to power steering and ac comp(outside/top belt)

 

[pureform]

ressurection

Hey, y'all. New to this forum. Have had my Protege5 a little over 2 yrs now and absolutely love it!!

I was wanting to see if anyone could offer step-by-step instruction or diagrams on accessory drive belt replacement for the Protege5, I've been searching around and haven't found a good concise tutorial..it looks a bit tricky. I really want to do it myself, and I've already bought the belt, but I don't want to screw anything up in the process...so what is the best plan of attack??

Any input would be extremely appreciated!

thanx,
brendan

 

[ucMP3]

You bought one belt or two? You need to replace both belts not just the one.

 

[pureform]

the outside belt looks fine to me (no cracks or frays), does it have to be replaced still?? the inside one is in bad shape and is squealing. I realize I'll have to take both off to get to it, but can't I just put the outside one back on that is in good shape..??

it's no big deal, I can run out and get the other belt, I'm really just trying to get advice on the actual task itself..tools needed, adjusting tension, best way to get at it, etc.

thanks,
brendan

 

[detroitcity]

Here's how I did it:

Begin by loosening the adjustment bolt on the outside belt: I believe it is on the front-most pulley (AC?), pointing toward the radiator... loosen it so that you can pull off the belt with your hands. 12mm socket? IIRC there are two bolts for each tensioner, one that holds it in-place on the accessory, and one mechanically pivots the entire accessory. Crack the one that holds it in place loose first.

Repeat the same on the inner-pulley: The tensioner is on the back-side of the alternator and points toward the fire-wall: Replace the inner-belt: tighten tensioner. Do the same for the outer-belt.

I'm not sure the specifics of how tight it is supposed to be, but I recall having to tighten them more than I expected, so that there was very little play in the belts.

Warning: DO NOT DRIVE WITHOUT THE ALTERNATOR BELT ON; this is connected to the waterpump, and you can overheat your engine by not spinning the waterpump.

The routing should be apparent to you...

 

[pureform]

thanks detroitcity, that is very helpful...I have an account on autozone.com...fyi: u can enter your year/make/model vehicle there and it has some repair guides with diagrams...I found this procedure on there and it is pretty much the same as you said..great..hopefully I can get on it this weekend..

thanks for the tips!!

~brendan

 

[ucMP3]

Thats good info from detroit. And yes, I would just replace both belts. Might as well do them both now, instead of having to do the whole thing over again. And it sound like the one belt you have is WAYYY past due on being changed.

 

[rustychops41]

I highly recommend removing the strut brace and cruise control module when changing belts, it will save a few pounds of flesh from being torn from your forearm while tightening the tensioner for the alternator belt. And by all means replace both belts at once. I also had the same issue as detroitcity, I had to retighten the alternator belt at least 3-4 times over the next few weeks, the new one would start squealing again on start-up. So spank it down good the first time.

 

[pureform]

I highly recommend removing the strut brace and cruise control module when changing belts, it will save a few pounds of flesh from being torn from your forearm while tightening the tensioner for the alternator belt. And by all means replace both belts at once.

cool, point taken. will replace both belts.

rustychops41, can this job be done all from above the engine (with the afformentioned parts removed), or will i have to get the car up on ramps or jack??

thanks for all the great advice thus far y'all!!

 

[rustychops41]

You will need to go under the car for the 14mm bolt that attaches the alternator to the engine block. But you only need to crack it loose a few turns.

 

[RABID_MP5]

That inner belt has got to be a major preventable risk to roadside breakdown. Replace it whenever in doubt - months, miles & visible wear. Toss the old one in the back as a spare. If no tools you can often put it on the empty pulleys and rail it up with the starter (coils unhooked). You'd have to get the outer belt off first, but you could cut it off if need be - it's not the one you gotta have.

 

[blatantsilence]

you can do it from above the car, the alternator pivot bolt will be tough to loosen from that point, but you can do it.. dealer told me to go from the underside, i said whatever.., but yeah remove the strut brace and cruise and you'll have more room to work..

 

[pureform]

update: belt replacement success

just an update...I successfully replaced both belts last week. I removed the strut bar and cruise control module as advised and was able to access everything from above the engine. The alternator bolt was tricky to crack loose, but luckily my long skinny-@ss arms were able to maneuver down in there and with the right positioning for leverage, I was able to loosen/tighten that 14mm bolt no problem.

tightnened till around a 1/4" of deflection and no squeals whatsoever. Tested with a/c running to load the outer belt as well and it's all good.

Thanks for the advice, it helped a lot!!

 

[BoostedPR5]

Who needs 2 belts anyways....

Congrats on the successful install though!

 

[madcanvis]

Ever have that 14mm alternator pivot bolt freeze up? New England car with 155k.
Holy crap... was that a pain in the but.
If you're in a similar situation I suggest spraying it with a lube a day or so in advance. Go in from behind the wheel, use the little red straw, and be as acurate as possible so you don't WD40 everywhere! By the way... my belt broke because the alternator seized. FUN STUFF!

 

[ruthless013]

Warning: DO NOT DRIVE WITHOUT THE ALTERNATOR BELT ON; this is connected to the waterpump, and you can overheat your engine by not spinning the waterpump.

this simple statement just saved my ass! i had just finished re-assembly after replacing the egr, and fired her up for the first time in a few weeks. alternator is frozen and quickly melted the belt. threw jumper cables on and hooked it to another car so battery wouldn't die while it ran, and came inside to read the forums about alternator replacement. about 5 minutes go by before i read this statement, and i immediately ran out to see the fluid beginning to bubble in the reservoir. i think i got to it before damage was done, but i was about another 5 minutes from major system failure.

ps - i'm a honda guy working on wifes old car (shouldve just traded it in when we bought the cx9 in july, but noooooooooo) and water pumps have their own belt on the civics ive worked on. (stooges)