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Belts squealing

malcolmyz85

malcolmyz85

Part of the furniture
E50 Owner
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ryton,tyne and wear
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malcolm
Elgrand
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I fitted 2 new belts approx 3 weeks ago , on day one no sequel , but on start up next day they squealed abit , checked belts and still correct tension ,I just left belts , too much tension is just as bad , every time I start motor they squeal bad and takes a few mins of driving before they stop , belts are still correct tension, I’m starting to think it’s just shit belts , only thing I can say about belts is they were bought from a correct supplier and that I have had them about 3 years in back as spares (I normally carry spare belts ) so has anyone else had this problem??? Or maybe should I try and slacken a tiny bit
 
malcolmyz85 said:
I fitted 2 new belts approx 3 weeks ago , on day one no sequel , but on start up next day they squealed abit , checked belts and still correct tension ,I just left belts , too much tension is just as bad , every time I start motor they squeal bad and takes a few mins of driving before they stop , belts are still correct tension, I’m starting to think it’s just shit belts , only thing I can say about belts is they were bought from a correct supplier and that I have had them about 3 years in back as spares (I normally carry spare belts ) so has anyone else had this problem??? Or maybe should I try and slacken a tiny bit
Click to expand...

If your belts are still squealing you have not tightened the belt up enough you be surprised how tight you have to do them you should only be able to twist the longest part you can get your hands on about 45° no more.
And after a couple of hundred miles you have to readjust them again
 
P
Andyzz said:
If your belts are still squealing you have not tightened the belt up enough you be surprised how tight you have to do them you should only be able to twist the longest part you can get your hands on about 45° no more.
And after a couple of hundred miles you have to readjust them again
Click to expand...
if anything belts are to tight , can’t really get 45 deg , got mate who has 40 years experience to check today , and he said belts were not slack
 
When I fitted my new belts I am a mechanic for the last 50 years, If belts started screeching after a couple of days I re-tightened them and after a couple weeks it happened again they stretch quite quickly when you first put new belts on they definitely need be tightening 2 or 3 times and yes they have to be done really tight you will be surprised otherwise they screech I'm sure a few more people will come on and tell you the same thing.
I always told my customers after a couple of weeks to come back for me to recheck the belts because they always stretch when new.
 
Thought mine were too tight untill i read on here just how tight they need to be , left the bottom guard off and tightened little by little over a coupe of days untill they stopped making noise
it's absolutely right that too tight is just as bad which is why i did it little by little and these things seem to defy rules as they do need to be TIGHT lol
 
Over the past 2/3 weeks the bus has developed a screeching noise at startup which would last about 30secs then go, seems to be something with belt as noise changes if I turn steering wheel whilst stationary. So in fear of continuing to wake the entire street for my early am shifts, I asked my local garage to look at it whilst doing the MOT.
No probs on MOT, straight thru, however, mechanic says both belt condition is fine, tensioners fine, belt tension is fine and he suspects the pulleys have worn and belt is slipping on worn pulleys... He said to persevere and if doesn't improve best action is to strip out pulleys and get sand blasted to reinstate grip on the pulleys.
Anyone ever encountered this or have any thoughts?
Oh it's an E51 S2 3.5 with 54k miles👍🏻
 
The pulleys are not worn, it's the belts that wear. The belts are a row of small V's The pulleys grip on the sides of the V's, not the bottom of the V where it's narrow, so you can tighten a worn belt as much as you want but if it's not gripping on the sides of the V's properly and just the bottom of the V's, it will slip. You need new belts and they need to be adjusted properly.
Under no circumstances have the pulleys sandblasted, he's talking through his arse. Next thing you need to find a better mechanic.
 
Maybe not the weather for it but they could be dry. My dad had a Vauxhall in the 1970s that would screech as it was driven. He was in Germany with the Army so had to drive for miles to get to an Opel garage that also looked at UK cars. On arrival the mechanics were having a beer break at a table outside the garage. As my dad arrived sounding like cats were being tortured under the bonnet one mechanic wandered over with his beer in hand. He told my dad to open the bonnet, when he did the German threw his beer into the engine. My dad was just about to thump him when the squealing stopped, the mechanic said, "dry fan belt" in German and went back to refill his beer glass
 
Surely the beer does not stop it slipping, just makes it quiet when it does so!
 
So two full days after I got the bus back from MOT, and there was no squealing until tonight, we've had damp cold weather and couple inches snow this morning and was all quiet, then just went out there to pick the Mrs up and it's back(albeit it only lasted 15secs) I think the temp has dipped tho.
I will get a can of the belt spray and see what results are... Until I can find a permanent fix or get someone to have a look and get second opinion. 👍🏻
 
It's always more of a problem in winter, as there is more electrical demand on the system, on top of the battery needing extra current to charge up. Short journeys make it worse too. If the temporary fix gets you to the warmer weather it will probably be ok until late autumn at least, unless it is really bad.
 
Can anyone tell me how to adjust the tension please? My 3.5 is starting to squeel like a pig again after changing belts last week. Thanks!
 
Lpgc said:
The pulleys don't really wear, they are steel, versus rubber on the belts. To consider wear on the pulleys is like considering wear on a knife that goes through butter. But the pulleys do have bearings that can wear and if bearings are worn they can make a noise. However your symptoms point to the belt(s) slipping on the pulleys, and since this happens just after engine start it points to the main belt slipping on the alternator. If the belts are in good condition it all points to lack of tension on the main belt that drives the alternator and PAS, particularly if the bearings don't seem to be at fault (and I doubt it is the bearings you are hearing, it will be belt slip). The other (shorter) belt only drives the AC compressor so this can easily be ruled out by turning AC off, but in any case the fact that it squeals after starting the engine points to the belt that drives the alternator.

By rule of thumb you should be able to twist a belt 90 degrees using only moderate hand pressure along the belt's longest free length, om Elgrands it seems to pay to err on the side of a bit more tension to prevent belt squeal, the distance between pulleys is comparatively short and there is no spring loaded tensioner fitted that might otherwise take up slack on unloaded sections of the belts. There are 2 belts and neither drive the water pump, hence 2 short belts, hence more tension is needed than might otherwise be expected.

The tension adjuster for the long main (alternator and PAS) belt can be accessed by removing the plastic access panel for changing the oil filter. The tension adjuster for the shorter AC belt can be accessed without removing anything by inserting a 12mm socket on medium/long extension from the passenger side of the front plastic undertray.

Don't pay the garage to change pulleys ;-)
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Pabloc said:
I received the above advice when I was having problems... Might be of help?
Click to expand...
Perfect thanks. So I'm guessing I remove the bottom cover and I'll access the tension bolts.
I've not checked the tension but I'll look for the 45 degree maximum twist.
Job for this afternoon 👍🏻
 
I believe so...i got a mobile mechanic round to put my new belts on, he dived under, big plastic cover off.. 15 mins later new belts on and not a squeel ever since
 
malcolmyz85 said:
I fitted 2 new belts approx 3 weeks ago , on day one no sequel , but on start up next day they squealed abit , checked belts and still correct tension ,I just left belts , too much tension is just as bad , every time I start motor they squeal bad and takes a few mins of driving before they stop , belts are still correct tension, I’m starting to think it’s just shit belts , only thing I can say about belts is they were bought from a correct supplier and that I have had them about 3 years in back as spares (I normally carry spare belts ) so has anyone else had this problem??? Or maybe should I try and slacken a tiny bit
Click to expand...
I fitted two new belts recently. Like tyres it is age of rubber that fails things as rubber ages and deteriorates. Belts were really cracked when off.
 
Pōru said:
I believe so...i got a mobile mechanic round to put my new belts on, he dived under, big plastic cover off.. 15 mins later new belts on and not a squeel ever since
Click to expand...
@Pōru saw your post - any further probs after the re-fitted belts? What area of Scotland does that mobile mechanic cover out of interest? roughly? Interested to hear it only too 15 mins or so - a good reference point for dropping it to the garage if I can get it fitted in.
 
I've been trying to sort this problem for a while. Belt slip works but is only temporary. My mechanic told me it can't be tensioned as they have automatic tensioning....I'm guessing after reading this post, that information is incorrect??
 
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