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Drivebelt tension
I have a '95 GCL with 4.0L six and 144K miles.
Over the winter, I heard a loud squealing coming from the engine compartment when I started the engine, and lasted about 5 seconds then disappeared. It only seemed to occur at cold engine startup. Now that its warmer, I noticed it happens whenever I turn on the AC compressor. I dont normally use the AC in the winter since I only use manual temp. controls and rarely turn it on for defrost. Therefore, I assumed the squeal was coming from the drivebelt rather than the compressor. I should also mention that I had to replace the original factory drivebelt about a year ago. I tightened the belt tension bolt per instructions, and the squeal seems to have vanished. Hurray. Question I have now....how tight should I make the drivebelt? I dont have access to a fancy "belt tension gauge", and no auto parts store in town seems to stock them or even know what they are. Right now, I can only get about 1/2" of play in the middle of the belt (between idler pulley and power steering pump). It seems pretty tight, but I'd like to get a scientific measure of its tension to make sure its within spec. I've heard that excessive belt tension will cause extra wear & tear on pulley bearings...like the AC compressor, power steering pump, etc. Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? |
Re: Drivebelt tension
On Tue, 18 May 2004 17:11:32 -0400, "TJM" <tjm@nospam> wrote:
> >Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? > You don't need to spend $$$ on a fancy gage. Ask the NAPA guy to look in his parts book under Tools. He should be able to find the Kricket Belt Tension Gage. My local dealer actually stocked it. It is around US$10 and works well enough for accessory belts. I would NOT use it for something critical like a Porsche timing belt. I can't recall the setting for a used serpentine belt on a 4.0, but I think it is something like 120 pounds. I'll bet yours is still waaay loose. It's a trick little tool. Buy one and you will use it often. John Davies http://home.comcast.net/~johnedavies/ '96 Lexus LX450 '00 Audi A4 1.8T quattro Spokane WA USA |
Re: Drivebelt tension
On Tue, 18 May 2004 17:11:32 -0400, "TJM" <tjm@nospam> wrote:
> >Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? > You don't need to spend $$$ on a fancy gage. Ask the NAPA guy to look in his parts book under Tools. He should be able to find the Kricket Belt Tension Gage. My local dealer actually stocked it. It is around US$10 and works well enough for accessory belts. I would NOT use it for something critical like a Porsche timing belt. I can't recall the setting for a used serpentine belt on a 4.0, but I think it is something like 120 pounds. I'll bet yours is still waaay loose. It's a trick little tool. Buy one and you will use it often. John Davies http://home.comcast.net/~johnedavies/ '96 Lexus LX450 '00 Audi A4 1.8T quattro Spokane WA USA |
Re: Drivebelt tension
On Tue, 18 May 2004 17:11:32 -0400, "TJM" <tjm@nospam> wrote:
> >Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? > You don't need to spend $$$ on a fancy gage. Ask the NAPA guy to look in his parts book under Tools. He should be able to find the Kricket Belt Tension Gage. My local dealer actually stocked it. It is around US$10 and works well enough for accessory belts. I would NOT use it for something critical like a Porsche timing belt. I can't recall the setting for a used serpentine belt on a 4.0, but I think it is something like 120 pounds. I'll bet yours is still waaay loose. It's a trick little tool. Buy one and you will use it often. John Davies http://home.comcast.net/~johnedavies/ '96 Lexus LX450 '00 Audi A4 1.8T quattro Spokane WA USA |
Re: Drivebelt tension
On Tue, 18 May 2004 17:11:32 -0400, "TJM" <tjm@nospam> wrote:
> >Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? > You don't need to spend $$$ on a fancy gage. Ask the NAPA guy to look in his parts book under Tools. He should be able to find the Kricket Belt Tension Gage. My local dealer actually stocked it. It is around US$10 and works well enough for accessory belts. I would NOT use it for something critical like a Porsche timing belt. I can't recall the setting for a used serpentine belt on a 4.0, but I think it is something like 120 pounds. I'll bet yours is still waaay loose. It's a trick little tool. Buy one and you will use it often. John Davies http://home.comcast.net/~johnedavies/ '96 Lexus LX450 '00 Audi A4 1.8T quattro Spokane WA USA |
Re: Drivebelt tension
A simple technique most techs use instead of a gauge, find the longest
distance between any two pulleys and with thumb and one finger, without forcing it, twist the belt as far as it will go. Tighten until it turns 90 degrees. It takes a bit of touch but you'll quickly be able to tell if it's too loose or too tight. "TJM" <tjm@nospam> wrote in message news:M_adnaPK4KK24Tfd4p2dnA@comcast.com... > I have a '95 GCL with 4.0L six and 144K miles. > > Over the winter, I heard a loud squealing coming from the engine compartment > when I started the engine, and lasted about 5 seconds then disappeared. It > only seemed to occur at cold engine startup. Now that its warmer, I noticed > it happens whenever I turn on the AC compressor. I dont normally use the AC > in the winter since I only use manual temp. controls and rarely turn it on > for defrost. Therefore, I assumed the squeal was coming from the drivebelt > rather than the compressor. I should also mention that I had to replace the > original factory drivebelt about a year ago. > > I tightened the belt tension bolt per instructions, and the squeal seems to > have vanished. Hurray. > > Question I have now....how tight should I make the drivebelt? I dont have > access to a fancy "belt tension gauge", and no auto parts store in town > seems to stock them or even know what they are. Right now, I can only get > about 1/2" of play in the middle of the belt (between idler pulley and power > steering pump). It seems pretty tight, but I'd like to get a scientific > measure of its tension to make sure its within spec. I've heard that > excessive belt tension will cause extra wear & tear on pulley > bearings...like the AC compressor, power steering pump, etc. > > Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? > > |
Re: Drivebelt tension
A simple technique most techs use instead of a gauge, find the longest
distance between any two pulleys and with thumb and one finger, without forcing it, twist the belt as far as it will go. Tighten until it turns 90 degrees. It takes a bit of touch but you'll quickly be able to tell if it's too loose or too tight. "TJM" <tjm@nospam> wrote in message news:M_adnaPK4KK24Tfd4p2dnA@comcast.com... > I have a '95 GCL with 4.0L six and 144K miles. > > Over the winter, I heard a loud squealing coming from the engine compartment > when I started the engine, and lasted about 5 seconds then disappeared. It > only seemed to occur at cold engine startup. Now that its warmer, I noticed > it happens whenever I turn on the AC compressor. I dont normally use the AC > in the winter since I only use manual temp. controls and rarely turn it on > for defrost. Therefore, I assumed the squeal was coming from the drivebelt > rather than the compressor. I should also mention that I had to replace the > original factory drivebelt about a year ago. > > I tightened the belt tension bolt per instructions, and the squeal seems to > have vanished. Hurray. > > Question I have now....how tight should I make the drivebelt? I dont have > access to a fancy "belt tension gauge", and no auto parts store in town > seems to stock them or even know what they are. Right now, I can only get > about 1/2" of play in the middle of the belt (between idler pulley and power > steering pump). It seems pretty tight, but I'd like to get a scientific > measure of its tension to make sure its within spec. I've heard that > excessive belt tension will cause extra wear & tear on pulley > bearings...like the AC compressor, power steering pump, etc. > > Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? > > |
Re: Drivebelt tension
A simple technique most techs use instead of a gauge, find the longest
distance between any two pulleys and with thumb and one finger, without forcing it, twist the belt as far as it will go. Tighten until it turns 90 degrees. It takes a bit of touch but you'll quickly be able to tell if it's too loose or too tight. "TJM" <tjm@nospam> wrote in message news:M_adnaPK4KK24Tfd4p2dnA@comcast.com... > I have a '95 GCL with 4.0L six and 144K miles. > > Over the winter, I heard a loud squealing coming from the engine compartment > when I started the engine, and lasted about 5 seconds then disappeared. It > only seemed to occur at cold engine startup. Now that its warmer, I noticed > it happens whenever I turn on the AC compressor. I dont normally use the AC > in the winter since I only use manual temp. controls and rarely turn it on > for defrost. Therefore, I assumed the squeal was coming from the drivebelt > rather than the compressor. I should also mention that I had to replace the > original factory drivebelt about a year ago. > > I tightened the belt tension bolt per instructions, and the squeal seems to > have vanished. Hurray. > > Question I have now....how tight should I make the drivebelt? I dont have > access to a fancy "belt tension gauge", and no auto parts store in town > seems to stock them or even know what they are. Right now, I can only get > about 1/2" of play in the middle of the belt (between idler pulley and power > steering pump). It seems pretty tight, but I'd like to get a scientific > measure of its tension to make sure its within spec. I've heard that > excessive belt tension will cause extra wear & tear on pulley > bearings...like the AC compressor, power steering pump, etc. > > Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? > > |
Re: Drivebelt tension
A simple technique most techs use instead of a gauge, find the longest
distance between any two pulleys and with thumb and one finger, without forcing it, twist the belt as far as it will go. Tighten until it turns 90 degrees. It takes a bit of touch but you'll quickly be able to tell if it's too loose or too tight. "TJM" <tjm@nospam> wrote in message news:M_adnaPK4KK24Tfd4p2dnA@comcast.com... > I have a '95 GCL with 4.0L six and 144K miles. > > Over the winter, I heard a loud squealing coming from the engine compartment > when I started the engine, and lasted about 5 seconds then disappeared. It > only seemed to occur at cold engine startup. Now that its warmer, I noticed > it happens whenever I turn on the AC compressor. I dont normally use the AC > in the winter since I only use manual temp. controls and rarely turn it on > for defrost. Therefore, I assumed the squeal was coming from the drivebelt > rather than the compressor. I should also mention that I had to replace the > original factory drivebelt about a year ago. > > I tightened the belt tension bolt per instructions, and the squeal seems to > have vanished. Hurray. > > Question I have now....how tight should I make the drivebelt? I dont have > access to a fancy "belt tension gauge", and no auto parts store in town > seems to stock them or even know what they are. Right now, I can only get > about 1/2" of play in the middle of the belt (between idler pulley and power > steering pump). It seems pretty tight, but I'd like to get a scientific > measure of its tension to make sure its within spec. I've heard that > excessive belt tension will cause extra wear & tear on pulley > bearings...like the AC compressor, power steering pump, etc. > > Thanks for any help. Where can I buy/rent a quality belt tension gauge? > > |
Re: Drivebelt tension
> You don't need to spend $$$ on a fancy gage. Ask the NAPA guy to look
> in his parts book under Tools. He should be able to find the Kricket > Belt Tension Gage. My local dealer actually stocked it. It is around > US$10 and works well enough for accessory belts. I just ordered the Krikit KR2 from NAPA......will let you know my results soon. |
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