mx5cartalk.com

if a fan belt is squealing like yours, it is either too loose, or it's worn out....my recommendation is to replace it

We have all had it from time to time but what worked.. brain ticks remembers what I did but not whether it worked. My bet the belt is slipping- you rev it up the spinning works like your tyres dropping a wheely. Adjust the belt not too tight- you are not playing a violin and you do not want excess stress on bearings and belt. . If the belt is loose soap would make it worse.If after adjusting it is still squealing try soap and water spray on with dispenser It might just settle down after you have used it for a few days. Some cars always seem to have noisy belts but you do not have long belts so it should be ok.

if the \"other\" belt you're referring to is the belt for the aircon pump thingo... there is a tensioner that you can loosen or tighten a bit to stop the squeeling. greasing the bet sounds like a really bad idea to me.....

Grease is not a good idea- you can try a squirt with WD40 or a silicone spray but not too much. The new belt may settle down. Another thing I heard is to take the belt off and re install it 180 deg - maybe worth a try. There is even a chance that it is a pulley not the belt- you might be able to hear better with a plastic tube or metal rod held near your ear- usual precautions. A belt manuf or distributor may offer some other idea- Gates are one of the big ones and if you rang their office one of the engineers might give you some tips.

This is what I did last night. I had a squeak coming from my belt when I start the car cold.

My belts were under 10,000km old and properly tight. The only evidence of anything wrong was surface rust on the pulleys.

A colleague of mine who used to be a race engineer for one of the V8 supercar teams suggested I spray degreaser on pulley, rinse it off and then use a decent amount of WD40. He felt that the rust on the pulleys or some grease might contribute to the sound. Anyway I did it last night. The noise died down a lot. In fact the whole engine becamame much quieter. I will drive the car for a few days and report back on whether this has cured the problem.

+1 for degreasing, i had a squeal for years until i degreased the whole engine bay at one of those $2.00 car wash joints and haven't had the squeal for a month now.

don't use grease or anything.

the belst usually squeal from them slipping, so while soap/grease/oil will stop the noise, it will also lubricate it and make it slip more.

I've heard there's some spray you can buy specifically for this purpose, it helps the belt grip. No idea what it's called.

best bet is as others have suggested, tighten the tensioners a little, it's possible that the new belts have stretched a little since they were put in.

I wouldn't put anything on the belt as that will help cause the squeal. Degrease and dry thoroughly.
If the pulleys are not damaged or worn it can be caused by a worn bearing, Usually the alternator is the culprit

hks_kansei wrote:I've heard there's some spray you can buy specifically for this purpose, it helps the belt grip. No idea what it's called.

Surprisingly it called "Belt Grip"
Belts that have been squealing for a while can also glaze and nothing will get them to stop squealing for long.
Only answer is to replace the belt.

Well so far so good. The belts have stopped squeeling completely. If the noise comes back soon, I'll let everyone know.