Help with '94 taurus wagon

Hey so i got a question, i have a serpintine belt on my wagon and something has been squeeling under the hood like the noise from the belt slipping. but it is only intermittent, so i am wondering if it could be my alternator going bad but i dont know how to test it, any ideas on how i can pinpoint what is going on. thanks a ton yall!

~Kenny

If you can either duplicate the noise or find a time when the squeal lasts long enough you can experiment, you could try spraying just about anything on the belt to see if the squeal goes away momentarily. If so, your belt probably has a glaze on it and needs to be replaced.

If you suspect alternator, then turning on the headlights and the blower to high (loading the electrical system) would likely cause the noise to show up. Of couse a slipping belt would still be a suspect in this case as well.

You'll also want to inspect the belt for wear and make sure the pulleys are aligned too. Is there any associated rumbling noise with the hood open and engine running? If the bearings are bad in the alternator, idler pulley, or self tensioner, they would likely cause a low rumble and possibly a squeal as well. To check these out, you could shut the engine off and remove the belt, then spin the various pulleys by hand to feel for roughness. If you notice roughness, regardless of if it is the source of the squeal, you should replace the rough part and may as well install a new belt at the same time.

In the past, we had issues with Goodyear belts (not so much their Gatorbacks though) and Dayco. Good experiences with Kelly-Springfield and Gates though.

-Rod

What are the problems with the dayco's? All the belts I have on my cars are dayco's this is why I ask. Thanks.

The problems we had were mostly with their v-belts, they seemed to stretch and need re-tightening quite often. We didn't have many problems with their serpentine belts (probably due to self tensioners) but figure the same quality was used in the serpentines as in their v-belts. Keep in mind this was 12 years ago now.

-Rod

Ok. Mine seem to stretch as well after about 6 months or so, even with the self tensioners the still loosen up alittle after awhile. I even replaced the tensioners on all our cars and still have this problem. One of our serpentine belts, on the buick, had stretched almost 2 inches after awhile. Seems maybe I should rule out replacing the tensioners again, and go with another brand belt. I've been playing with these belts for years. Thanks for this info!