Why fan belt squeals

Just a few rubs on the belt with bar soap can solve the bar squealing problem for quite some time and save money in the process. Top Tech Automotive always stresses to our customers in the Billings area with a squealing fan belt that it is always important to be safe when working around an engine and turning off the engine is the best bet when applying either belt dressing or bar soap to a fan belt to solve a squealing belt problem.

Cody on March 30, at pm. BlueDevil Pro on April 2, at am. Cody- Most likely you are correct that the belt simply needs to be replaced. We hope this helps! Michael Barnum on May 12, at am.

BlueDevil Pro on May 13, at pm. Michael- Most serpentine or single belt systems use an automatic belt tensioner which is just an idler pulley on a spring loaded arm. Thank You! Jeremy furgus on May 23, at pm. BlueDevil Pro on May 28, at pm. Jeremy- Thanks for your question about your S Cialella on May 31, at pm. BlueDevil Pro on June 11, at am. Cialella, Thanks for your question about your Buick. Malik on June 4, at pm. BlueDevil Pro on June 16, at pm. Rod on June 24, at am. BlueDevil Pro on July 6, at pm.

Rod- Sometimes if problems happen right after some maintenance was completed, they can be related to whatever maintenance was just done. Rachid Pauletta on June 29, at pm. BlueDevil Pro on June 29, at pm. Rachid- Yes, if the belt is not properly tensioned you could experience issues when driving the vehicle. Tammy McKenzie on July 24, at pm. BlueDevil Pro on August 10, at am. Tammy- Thanks for your question about your Caravan.

BlueDevil Pro on August 7, at am. Chad- The noise you are hearing on start up may be due to the belt slipping off of the drive pulley. Thank you! Dylan on August 8, at am. BlueDevil Pro on August 17, at pm.

Dylan, Thanks for your question about your Cheyenne. Dan on August 13, at am. BlueDevil Pro on August 21, at pm. Sudhir on August 15, at pm. Sudhir, Thanks for your question about your Accent. Chloe on August 27, at pm. BlueDevil Pro on September 10, at pm. Chloe, Thanks for your question about your Ford Fiesta. Thanks again for your question! Karolina on September 14, at am. BlueDevil Pro on September 30, at pm.

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Related Articles. Article Summary. Method 1. Ensure your vehicle is equipped with a neoprene belt. Most modern vehicles have a serpentine belt instead of a fan belt, though the names may be used interchangeably.

Older model vehicles and some high-performance applications still utilize fan belts instead of electric fans.

Older belts were made of neoprene and would benefit from the application of belt dressing, but newer EPDM-made belts may dry out as a result of using belt dressing. If your fan belt was installed after the year , it is likely an EPDM-made belt. The two belts are difficult to tell apart visually until they are worn out and need to be replaced. Open the hood. You will need to apply the belt dressing directly onto the belt. In order to do so, you will need to open the hood of the vehicle and remove any cowl cover that may be in place over the fan belt itself.

This may require the use of some basic hand tools like a socket or hand wrench. You will need a direct line of sight and access to the belt while the engine is running. Locate the fan belt. The fan belt will likely be located at the front of the engine, attached to a pulley that rotates the cooling fan or fans for the radiator.

It will often be black or grey. You may be able to locate it faster by starting at the radiator fan and working backward. Serpentine or accessory belts that serve the same function as a fan belt may be on the side of a horizontally mounted engine.

Start the vehicle. Ensure the vehicle is in park with the parking brake engaged, then start the engine. You will need the engine to be running in order to apply the belt dressing evenly over the entire length of the belt. Spray the belt dressing directly onto the belt. With the engine running, spray the belt dressing directly onto the back of the fan belt.

As the engine runs, the fan belt will be moving quickly, so you can leave the can in one place and spray onto the belt as it spins. The squeaking from the fan belt should stop almost immediately. Method 2. Inspect the belt for misalignment.

A common cause of noisy fan belts is a slight misalignment of the belt on the pulleys. With the hood open, examine the belt to ensure it is mounted on the top most pulley completely straight. If you are unsure, place a tape measure along the pulley to provide yourself with a frame of reference. A belt that is not properly aligned will wear out faster. Identify signs of damage or excessive wear. If your belt needs to be replaced, it will often become noisy as a result of the wear or damage.

Shine a light on the belt and look at it closely. If there are any visible cracks or chunks of belt missing, the belt should be replaced immediately.

Neoprene belts must be replaced every 30, to 60, miles. Pinch, squeeze and twist them, looking for cracks, fraying, splits or brittle places. If you replace early when small amount of wear is found you can avoid a major repair later. A maintenance inspection performed during an oil change visit can reveal that a belt should be replaced.

As with any recommendation to replace parts or service work ask that the service adviser show you what they find.