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Car Question

L

Lamont Burns

Platinum Member
So, Jiffy Lube says I need a new Serpentine Belt soon. They can do it for me for $85. I declined.

I see buying the belt itself is not expensive.

Anyone have any experience with doing this manually? I am pretty cheap and do not want to pay $85 for this.

A good resource suggestion, or any success/horror stories with this would be appreciated.

Thanks!
 
Get a second opinion but dont wait.

Easy job if you have the right tools but some cars are a bitch. Belts vary in price as to car, quality and so forth.

They always try to sell you something like an air cleaner even if your old one only has a few miles on it.
 
a serpentine belt is a simple job on most cars. Takes about 2 minutes on my Jeeps and a majority of that time is remembering what size socket you need for the tensioner
 
Look at the serpentine belt for cracks. Deep cracks mean that you should replace it. Shallow cracks in the rubber ribs only mean that it is OK. Chunks of the rubber missing mean that it needs to be replaced. What kind of car is this? Usually it is pretty easy to replace. These belts are often $20-$30 at an auto parts store.
 
Most serp belts get replaced well before they are relly needed, and I am a mechanic that makes money by replacing parts. When I first started working on cars I worked at some lube stations and they put pressure on everybody to replace every small thing.

And a serp belt will have some cracks in the material, that is normal.

Year, make, model, and how many miles are on this belt and the car?
 
I was just there last Sunday, those bastards alwasy try and up-sell everything they do. If your really woried about it then just bring it in to a car dealer of you make (Chevy,Ford,etc..) and they'll check it our for free most of the time.
 
I just picked up a Haynes manual for my car, and replaced it without a problem in 30 minutes following the instructions and pictures.
 
Replacing a serpentine belt (in my case, anyway) usually requires a socket and ratchet, sometimes an extender bar for the ratchet, ten minutes, and many many swear words.
 
The Car:

A 2000 Chevy Malibu
My guess would be 20k miles on the belt(ROUGH GUESS)

Jiffy Lube says "some small cracks, enough so that I should replace it."

Is this something that a semi-car moron, but good at logic and reasoning type person could handle alone?

 
Originally posted by: LAMONTBURNS
The Car:

Is this something that a semi-car moron, but good at logic and reasoning type person could handle alone?
Click to expand...

Yes.

One of the pulleys that the belt goes around will be on a short arm. The other end of the arm is a pivot. There's a spring that causes the pully to draw tension on the belt by pivoting on that arm.

There will be a nut in the center of the pulley. Get a socket on it and move the pully around the pivot to release tension. Take out the belt, replace it, use the same process to get the new belt in.

The job requires more brute force than any special tools, skills, or knowledge.
 
Originally posted by: LAMONTBURNS
Haynes Manual, can you provide the information on where you got it?
Click to expand...
Autozone or advance auto parts will have a manual for your specific auto.

Sounds like it's easy enough to do.

Also, don't pay for things like that at a quick lube place. They are good for quick lubes and that's it - have a trusted mechanic or dealer do real work on your car.
 
Originally posted by: LAMONTBURNS
The Car:

A 2000 Chevy Malibu
My guess would be 20k miles on the belt(ROUGH GUESS)

Jiffy Lube says "some small cracks, enough so that I should replace it."

Is this something that a semi-car moron, but good at logic and reasoning type person could handle alone?
Click to expand...
If you've got the right tools and a manual like Haynes, it shouldn't be that hard. You might run into some space issues since the engine is mounted the wrong way (😉), but it shouldn't be impossible.
 
Originally posted by: LAMONTBURNS
The Car:

A 2000 Chevy Malibu
My guess would be 20k miles on the belt(ROUGH GUESS)

Jiffy Lube says "some small cracks, enough so that I should replace it."

Is this something that a semi-car moron, but good at logic and reasoning type person could handle alone?
Click to expand...


It soudns like your belt is fine. The small cracks int eh belt are OK, as someone else already said. When they are deep and or the belt starts coming apart then you replace it. The belt should last 60K, depedning on conditions and quality of belt.

 
My gosh, these forums are amazing.

I could ask almost anything, and get quality, friendly information in less than 5 minutes.

I appreciate the help guys and gals, if I have a good story about my replacing the belt, I will let you know.

With my luck, I will unscrew something and the engine will just fall apart entirely.
 
If the car only has 20k and is only 3 years old I don't think it needs to be replaced. You should get a second opinion.

Tom
 
Originally posted by: LAMONTBURNS
My gosh, these forums are amazing.

I could ask almost anything, and get quality, friendly information in less than 5 minutes.

I appreciate the help guys and gals, if I have a good story about my replacing the belt, I will let you know.

With my luck, I will unscrew something and the engine will just fall apart entirely.
Click to expand...

Do not trust this form for financial, legal, or medical advice. 😀
 
It's a good thing they sell oil ther eto, cause you're gonna need lots of lube if you have them do anything to your car other than change the oil.

When i changed my Spec over to synthetic, the guy was like, yeah you need new wiper blades and a new air filter, and PCV valve. I told him i'll risk it as it's still under warranty.
He then says they don't cover that under warranty. So i then told him to look at the odometer with it's whopping 300 miles on it.
 
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