squeeky belt... change or fix?

[gnailuh]

Hello again... If you read my other posts, I'm doing some maintenance work... getting a high-flow air filter, changed my brakes and rotors, cleaning the throttle body... now need help with squeaky belt.

Can't really tell if it's the power steering or the alternator... but the belt looks fine and they are not loose according to the specs. I'm in the bay area so the weather is great and no real damage on the belt. It only happens on cold mornings, the belt squeeks for about 20 min until it's nice and warm and stops squeaking.

I tired belt dressing, but it actually makes it worse. Driving me nuts!!! The car has 83K miles, even though the belts look fine, should I replace them? Is there a good way to stop the madness? Should I just tighten them and see?

Any help would be greatly appreciated... thanks!!

[Zero8985]

i have that same problem right now... it IS the alternator belt, if it's the same problem is mine. When you turn on your air or lights, it gets worse. I just changed my alternator belt, and it still does it, i am going back to the mechanic, because tightening it hasn't worked thus far, there's only so much you can tighten. It could be the alternator itself, which i pray it isn't. The best info i can give you is if i solve the problem soon, i'll let you know how i did. But if you solve the problem before me, please let me know.

[95eclipse-gsx]

hi guys..

joine me in today i had the same problem too... my car stopped running for the past 4 months and started running today except for the squeaking sound... eclipserst told me to change the alternator ... my question is can the alternator from eclipse RS fix into 1995 gsx??? is that possible ???

[RiceRocket18]

hi guys.... unfortunately we all have this prolems, (more or less). if you read the previous thread on the sqealing sound. you'll see that i mentioned about how my car makes a high pitch sqealing sound when i do a sudden aceleration to 4000RPM or higher. it's not very loud.. but noticible sound. and now that you mentioned.... i too hear a litte bit of sqealing sound when the weather gets humid, meaning whenever it snows or rains, i hear that sqealing sound again. except unlike the aceleration one, it's lower pitch and level of sound is lower too. couple people who had/have the same problem all said that it's one of the belts. so i am planning on getting it titghened up or make sure that they're centered next time i go in for a maintainance check.

[ashah000]

Hey me too ...
My PS belt will sqeal all the time... i can use belt dressing but that only works for a little bit.

[gnailuh]

I sort of fixed it, but not 100%.

I loosened the belt, cleaned it with alcohol swabs while the car was running. Then sprayed a bid of belt dressing. Finally tightened the belt a little tighter than how it was. Presto, no sound!

Then I drove it on the highway for about 1 1/2 hours and the noise morphed into something new... it's ok at idle, but as soon as the rpm reaches over 2500, a whine can be heard.

Then this morning, it got to the point as soon as I lay on the gas, you can hear a scream... pretty bad. Still, idling is fine.

Driving me nuts!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Talon69]

Putting belt dressing on serpintine belts is a big NO NO!!! it makes them slip worse and squeek louder.
I had the same prob with mine squeeling in the morning turned out it was my alt belt. if you want to narrow it down just take some electrical cleaner that is used for connectors the none harsh stuff and spray it on 1 belt at a time and the squeek will stop momentarly.

[Talon69]

Oh yeah forgot even tho the belt looks good it could be glazed over and making it slip also

[gnailuh]

And if the belt is glazed, how can you fix that? Replace it? Clean it somehow?

[ashah000]

What do you mean by glazed

[97dsmeclipse]

i think its just a dsm problem, becuase i have this problem when its cold, my friend with a talon just changed all his belts and it makes noises when he drives and from a cold start, then my friend with a gsx has it to in the cold. so i think its just a cold thing.

[Talon69]

97dsm could be right, but if your belt is glazed you need a new one and make sure the pullys are clean sometimes cleaning them up helps also so they grip better

[gnailuh]

This didn't happen to my 97 gst until just a year and a half ago... so how does the dsm develope the issue? belt problem? old age? doesn't sound like everyone has the problem... gotta be fixable...

[Zero8985]

it's pretty wierd, considering we have at least 3 cases of the belt squeaking, and at least 3 different engines with this problem (420a, 4g64, and 4g63t). Maybe we all have the same alternator, or similar ones, and they just go weak after 6 or 7 years... that's the only thing i can come up with, cause i changed my belts, and they are still squeaking, and i tighten them, but they still consist. If the belts are new, and tightened, and the problems still there, then it's probably not the belts.

[gnailuh]

Well, for me it's not the alternator, it's the power steering. I know this because I spray dressing on it, or clean it with alcohol, it immediately and fully affects the sound.

Out of luck then I guess...