Serpentine Belts

First and foremost, make sure you have a diagram before removing the old belt. If there isn

Go to "Pelicanparts.com. Form here you can download the entire schematic for your car.

The following link will get you the serpentine belt routing path for most all vehicles. Diagram 8-1 is the one for the 2000 Ford F-150 with A/C and 8 pulleys. http://www.daycoproducts.com/daycoweb.nsf/DaycoSerpentineBeltGuide.pdf Hope this helps!

Questions about belts are probably the most asked in this forum, along with questions about fuel filters/pumps and thermostats.

If you peruse the answered questions, you'll find a dozen or more involving belts!

Here's the consensus;

Look around under the hood for a factory sticker which shows the routing. If it's still there,

good. It's a great reference.

If the belt is still on the car, make a sketch of the routing before

changing it.

If the belt has broken and you have no sticker showing the routing, you're hosed! Your car will never run again.

Well, not really, but it complicates matters. Some folks, including me, have found diagrams online, but it seems that the belt routing varies from year to year and is dependent on which engine you have. You can't necessarily trust the diagrams you find hither and yon.

The Haynes manual is invaluable, but lets us down on belt routing. There is no singular good diagram.

If you have a broken belt and no diagram, you have a compounded problem. You need to find the correct replacement AND the proper routing.

You could try dropping in to your local dealership and asking them for a part number. That will (probably) get you the right belt. They might be able to get you a routing diagram too.

If you have the remnants of the old belt, it might have a number printed on it which a parts house can translate to a replacement. Or, they might be able to measure it and compare it to what's in their computer.

I've learned a few lessons about belts. If you still have one on the car, but no routing sticker, make a sketch NOW and keep it in the glove box.

If you can see a number on the belt that's currently on the car, write it down and keep it in the glove box.

If you're buying a new, but unknown belt, be prepared. Know the year of your car, the size of the engine and if you have AC or not. This is what the parts counter guy will need to know to hopefully find you the right belt.

While you're in the parts house, buy a Haynes or Chilton manual for your car. You'll need to check out the procedure for changing your belt.

Hope this helps. If you still have problems, come back and drop us a line. We'll try again.

FriPilot

You have no "adjuster bolt". You have a serpentine drive belt and it's tension is maintained by an automatic belt tensioner. It is a pulley mounted on a housing containing a "clock spring" that keeps the belt under a pre-set tension and compensates for belt-wear. It is released by a special belt tool or a flex-drive handle. Mark---Raleigh, NC

Easy, take a 1/2" drive breaker bar and insert it into the square 1/2" slot on the back of the alternator bracket and pull. This will loosen the tension on the belt which can then be removed.

you will have to get you hands on a haynes manual as the belt system varies depending on the model the haynes manual showhs all configurations

get one on eBay (cheap)

locate the "tensioner" pulley, on the schematic that is under your hood, on top of the radiator. Then place a socket on the bolt head in the middle of that pulley, and with a breaker bar, pull the entire pulley towards the front of the van, releasing the tension, and letting the belt slip off easily. Repeat this procedure once you have the new belt routed around most of the pulleys properly and slip it over the tensioner pulley last. Double check belt alignment on all pulleys, make sure it is well tensioned, then start your van and let it idle about 5 to 10 seconds, shut it off, and recheck the belt alignment and tension. If all looks well, then close the hood and call it a job well done.

This is pretty much the right answer except that a standard size socket and breaker will not go on the tensioner pulley. The wheel hub is right directly across and there is not enough room. You need to use a wrench on the bolt and with a little imagination you can use something to help you gain leverage on the wrench making it easier to release the tension. I was able to use my jack handle and it fit over the head of the wrench and this gave me the help and leverage I needed. You will figure this out better when you are looking at it, you will see what has to be done. A word to the wise, if you can't figure out how to make something to give you leverage, you probably shouldn't be attempting this yourself in the first place.

It SHOULD be under the hood, either on the radiator housing or above your head, on the underside of the hood.

Most cars and trucks today have what is called a serpentine belt which runs most accessories.They are very dependable and usually easy to replace. To decide if your belt needs replacing, simply look at the grooved side of the belt to see if it is cracking badly. A couple of cracks every 3 inches is normal, but if you see cracks every 1-2 inches I would recommend that you replace it. On most cars and trucks the procedure is basically the same. First off, get the correct belt by bringing your cars VIN number to the parts store(located on your cars dashboard) the parts store may need it. If there are two choices, get them both so you can complete the repair. Once you have the correct belt, take a minute to review how the belt runs across the pulleys and also check to see if your car/ truck has a underhood diagram of belt routing in case you need it. In most cases you will need a socket wrench or breaker bar with either a 3/8" and /or 1/2" head on it and possibly a short extension. Some models may require a wrench of these similar sizes.Now that you are ready to go to work, you will need to find the spring loaded tensioner which is generally located near the top of the belt path; it usually has a shinny pulley on it. Look at the tensioner and insert the tool into it and apply opposing pressure to release the belt.Now, simply install the new belt making sure it fits into the grooves on all the pulleys. Start the car to check it and you are done and you saved yourelf some money!

I went to a Chevy dealer and they printed me a copy for my 97' delta 88. I'm sure they could do it for you.

See the attached link for a picture of the 5.7 Hemi. It's not a true schematic, but the picture is pretty clear as to the belt route. Compare it to your engine first before you take the old one off. I believe your tension pully is the far left. http://www.popularhotrodding.com/tech/0403phr_chrysler_hemi_57_liter_345ci_engine_review/photo_02.html See the attached link for a picture of the 5.7 Hemi. It's not a true schematic, but the picture is pretty clear as to the belt route. Compare it to your engine first before you take the old one off. I believe your tension pully is the far left. http://www.popularhotrodding.com/tech/0403phr_chrysler_hemi_57_liter_345ci_engine_review/photo_02.html

Take off pass. front wheel and cover inside wheel well. i believe it is a 3/8 drive ratchet into tension pulley and push towards front of car. The belt will get loose to remove.

Remove the inside engine cover and you will see a dip stick and you can see that it runs down to the transmission. to further clarify; if the airfilter housing is a clock and the 12 o'clock position is closest to the front center of the rv then the dipstick will be just of the 5 o'clock position. FYI this is also where you fill the trans - through the dip stick.

You will need a 1/2" breaker bar with a handle at least 18" long. Locate the belt tensioner and release enough tension so that the belt can be safely displaced from the alternator or any other convenient appliance. before removing the belt, make sure you make good notes on how the belt is to go back on ( or you may simply refer to the diagram under the hood). Remove the old belt. Thread the new belt into place, getting it ready for the last appliance in line. Displace the tensioner enough to safely attach the belt to the last pulley in line. Release the tensioner and remove the breaker bar. If the belt is correctly installed (make sure it is) then the job is done.

A further suggestion. I had a problem releasing the tension enough to reinstall the serpentine belt so I used an 18" long, 1" (id) black iron pipe as an extension for my breaker bar. It makes a world of difference and one person, even an old guy, can then de-tension the belt and slip the belt over the alternator pulley.

You will probably have to loosen the fan (the 13mm bolts on the fan clutch, not the 10mm going into the water pump) in order to get a 1/2" drive breaker bar on the belt tensioner. I recommend also removing the right (passenger side - on your left as you're leaning over the radiator!) idler pulley - a single 13mm bolt. Having that pulley out of the way makes it POSSIBLE to snake the belt down to the A/C compressor. Once the new belt is wound around all the lower components, heave over on that breaker bar (in the belt tensioner) and slip the belt over the top pulley last. Congrats! Take a sip of your fav beverage, and now have your buddy push on that breaker bar one last time while you put the idler pulley back in place with the 13mm bolt.

FYI, that idler pulley bearing goes out before anything else and may be the reason you're replacing the belt in the first place. $22 at AutoZone.

It only takes about five minutes to replace the belt, but it takes 30 minutes to get the fan out of the way and back on. Typical Ford.

Loosen the bolt on the tensioner pulley until the pulley freely slides along it's track. Put the belt on, paying close attention to the diagram that should be on the inside of your hood on a sticker. If you don't have one, don't worry, the belt will only fit when it is "wrapped" the correct way. Once you get the belt on, it will still be pretty loose. You will need to tighten it using the tensioner pulley. Make sure the tensioner pulley is tightened down completely.

Caveat: You may prefer to have this procedure done professionally, but if you're strapped for cash this how you can do it. first you will need a jack, a block of wood, a length of rope, and a good socket set with extender and deep well sockets. Jack your beretta up, take of the passenger front wheel and remove the lower right shroud under your wheel well...this will expose the tensioner pulley which is impossible to get to otherwise. place your tire on its side underneath your car which u can use as a jackstand if you need to (i did). Next you will have to put the jack under your motor with the wood block to increase its surface area and also protect your engine from damage. once you are supporting the engine from underneath, you will need to remove the engine mount on the left side of the engine. there are around 10 bolts to remove this. once done you will now need to pull your engine forward. you can just grab it and pull really hard and it will rock ( do NOT rock your car of the jack ) i took a rope and with one guy leaning the engine forward i tied the rope from the hook on top of the engine to a nearby chainlink fence which i tied it off too and it held it just fine. With the engine in place now you must all but remove your alternator. once this is done it is now possible to get the belt on although it will take 2 guys one to loosen and push on the tensioner pulley the other to pull on the belt and get it in place while the first guy releases the tension on the belt. once you have it in place tighten your tensioner pulley back up, tighten your alternator back on, and slowly let your engine loose to its original position. now you will have to pull it forward by hand once you have reassembled your mounting bracket and bolt it back in place. let the jack down off your engine. replace the shroud under your wheel.jack up your car so you can put your tire back on. replace the wheel, let her down and start her up! chances are you are now beat down and upset, but your car works fine. this procedure is difficult, trying, and time consuming. Chevy Berettas are good cars but when you stick a huge engine in a little car body this is what you get. My serpentine belt was original to the car and lasted approximately 120,000 miles before it split and shredded without warning. For the record this engine is also found on Chevy Luminas, Olds Cutlass Supremes, and Pontiac Grand Prixs and are designed to be serviced by the dealer and to be next to impossible to get any work done easily on. thank the powers that be that they are pretty reliable. GOOD LUCK. A shop quoted me at $90 to fix this. if you have the money, DO IT! if not then do this. it worked for me. You don't NEED to do the above. Just use a crowbar and stretch the belt on against the alternator. The tensioner will move with the pressure created. It takes about 2 minutes doing it this way. This answer is for the 2.2l 4 cyl. engine. TO ANSWER this you need to be clear on what engine you have... Both answers above have some merit. If it is a Beretta with the 3.1 ltr (M) engine you need to support the motor from under and remove the engine mount bracket. If not and you have the 3.1ltr (T) engine you can use normal procedures ( you might have to remove a belt guard on some models) but just by using the tensioner pully you can remove the belt and put one on. The Vin (M) engine is a pain.

You have to unscrew the motor mount srews.

if it slips, then it does not charge the battery, and you might not make it home if you are driving home at night with the headlights on.

from the bottom 13mm loosen idler pulley bolt then turn adjuster bolt under pulley

It should be right in front of you when you open the hood, on the plasic shroud covering the Radiator and Lights

You will need a 1/2 " breaker bar / or a 1/2 " inch ratchet. Put in on the tensioner and pull towers you. This will release the tension. Repeat the procedure to put belt back on. Make sure you pay attention to how the belt goes on before removing so you won't have problems installing. Good luck...

Here you go.

http://mvreader.com/multiview/dayco/index.php?bgInterchange=1&l=n

Put your specific info in and it will give you a diagram that should help.

I believe there is an idler pulley which keeps the belt tight on the 4.0. If you are experiencing slop or looseness, I suggest you look at replacing the belt or maybe the idler is stuck or broken. I had to replace an idler in a Wrangler once.