Engine Belt Noise? - What is it?

Just about 3 days ago I noticed my car's belt ( left, next to the engine ) seems to be making a noise as it spins while it idles. When I put it in neutral, it stays the same, when I accelerate, it's gone. Does anyone know what this could be? It's annoying, it might've been there before and I had just not noticed ( I usualy drive with music on pretty loud. ) The car seems to respond and drive as it always has, but that noise is really bugging me.

It's a 2001 GrandAM SE v6 3.4 | 24420 miles. So it would be strange for it to be the belt I think. I should probably take it in to get a check up anyway, but any suggestions until I have the cash will help!

Could you describe the noise more?

If it's a ticking, it could just be your lifters.

If it's a scraping, it could be a partially-thrown belt.

If it's a squealing, then it could be just a plain ole' bad belt and you'll need a new one. or some belt dressing might fix it.

It's somewhere between a ticking and a squealing from those descriptions. Do you've any clue how much fixing this will usualy run?

-g

Well then it just sounds like it's either a bad or a dirty belt. If it was dirty and you bought some belt dressing to fix it, that'd be around 5 to 10 dollars. If you bought a new belt, that should run 15 to 20 dollars.

If you use the belt dressing go easy with it if you over-do-it it can sometimes cause the belt to begin slipping. spray just enough to stop the noise "more is not better in this case" If that does not take care of the noise it may possibly be the tensioner pulley, also check the other pulleys for any kind of build-up. If there is clean the pulleys with a brush or something comparable.

I would stay away from belt dressing. It can make a gummy mess. Likely it is a pulley that is a bit dirty. Look for a pulley or tensioner where the back of the belt makes contact. Give that contact point a good wipe with a rag and wd40 and see if the noise is still present. Just don't go nuts with it though. If the noise stops, you know it is a dirty pulley. Otherwise, your are likely looking at a pulley that is going bad or the tensioner.