squeaking

[bigry2004]

the last few days when i fire up my 97 blazer LT [ 151k miles ] theres like a small squeaking noise coming from under the hood. im not too mechanically savvy, but when i pop the hood i cant tell if its coming from the serp belt or the motor itself or what. it goes away after a minute or two of idling, and then i leave. is this something that can just be elimated with greasing or some stop squeak? or is this a disaster waiting to happen?

[wolfox]

When's the last time you inspected/changed your belt? The going away after 2 minutes of idling says to me it's most likely the cause.

[BlazerLT]

Could be pretty well anything from an alternator bearing to a tensioner to a worn out belt.

[bigry2004]

Originally Posted by wolfox

When's the last time you inspected/changed your belt? The going away after 2 minutes of idling says to me it's most likely the cause.

i inspected the belt after i heard the noise and there's no sign of major cracks or anything in the belt. looks to be in good shape. was replaced about 4 months ago.

how would you go about fixing or tightening an alternator bearing?

[wolfox]

THe bearing is sealed inside the unit and requires some specialized tools to repair. It's worth it to trade it in for its core value on a rebuilt. BlazerLT's correct in that a bearing about to turn loose in the alternator or any other acessories may be going out, and they are difficult to pinpoint. I use the tip of a long screwdriver to probe at the case of the suspect part with my thumb over the end of the handle, resting your ear on your thumb. The squeal will get louder/transmitted through the driver and your thumb when you touch it to the suspected part. Youll, have to hunt around quickly within those 2 minutes of idle time, but you'll find it using that method. Good luck!

[BlazerLT]

Originally Posted by bigry2004

i inspected the belt after i heard the noise and there's no sign of major cracks or anything in the belt. looks to be in good shape. was replaced about 4 months ago.

how would you go about fixing or tightening an alternator bearing?

You need to pinpoint it more.

Why do you think it is the alternator when you don't even know where the sound is coming from?

Get under the hood and find the problem location before you do ANYTHING.