Yota4runner

Okay so I know that generally when a belt starts sqealing that its loose or worn or in need of replacement. But my belt is brand new (was replaced when alternator went about a month ago) It doesn't appear to be loose and the old soap on the sides seems to do the trick to get rid of the sqealing temporarily. Its getting rather annoying, any ideas?

wrenchmonster

I'm assuming tension on the belt is good? How about rust on the pulleys? Do you have a lot of moisture in your area? Does it squeak all the time? Cold and Hot?

-Wrench

Yota4runner

Tension is fine, Didnt notice any rust when I put in the new alternator. Mositure..yes Theres 5cms of snow on the ground now and its still falling. it seems to do it more when its warm and with the heater on....(I think the heater only factors in because the idle drops a bit when the heater is on) When I step on the gas, no more sqeaking.

wrenchmonster

Well, considering it's a brand new belt, you probably don't have a problem with the belt composition unless it sat on the shelf for 10 years. You tried the soap trick with little success.

I'd go the other way and try to get some grip instead of slip. I would clean the pulleys with a wire brush and try running some sand paper (emory cloth works well) on the belt. You can do both above operations with the engine running if you are EXTREMELY CAREFUL. If you are nervous, do this without the engine running obviously. If you do decide to do this, make sure you're at least on the trailing side of the belt rotation.

You can also try some belt dressing, which is sticky spray stuff. Personally I hate this stuff and have not had much long term success with it.

Also, if your belt isn't a banjo string yet, you may want to try and give it just an extra half turn to see if it goes away then. Careful not to put too much strain on your related bearings.

-Wrench

Yota4runner

Thanks man, I'll give it a shot and see what happens.

eric-the-red

Are you using a Toyota belt or aftermarket. I replace my alternator belt with one from Crappy Tire, and also could not get rid of the squeaking. After about 6 months I bought another one from the dealer and used that. No more squeaks.

Rick F.

I had the same problem on my old '90. The problem went away after I had the AC and PS pulleys replaced following an "accident". It may also be the alignment between the pulleys.

lee

did you try some belt dressing? i know it doesnt solve it, but itll stop the squeak.

lv4runner

Double check the tension. It's been awhile but if I remember correctly the alternator belt has to be tensioned by pivoting the altenator right? When I still had my truck with a 22re, the new belt I put would squeal all the time until I was able to pry the alternator down with a small crowbar and tighten it up. I had someone help me by holding the bar tight until I could tighten the bolt up. Like I said though it's been about 5 years since I did it so I could be mistaken on which belt it was. Good luck.

Yota4runner

I have no idea, the shop I took it to did it for me. Normally I wouldn't take it to the shop but I was pressed for time and the mechanic is a friend of the family.

Lee- I'll look into it. see what happens, I know it won't be a permanent fix but I'll do anything at this point to get rid of that damn sound.