time to change the belts in my car...

[rh71]

It's at 76k miles and the original belts are still in there. Apparently the alternator belt is squealing so I'll replace that one too. My question is... they say to replace belts at 60k miles ... which belts are they talking about? There's timing belts, A/C belt, alternator belt, and whatever else. Aren't timing belts a "set" or 3 alone ?

Which ones am I supposed to change "on schedule" and should I may as well replace the alternator belt instead of adjusting it (the squeal) ?

I'll probably bring it to Pep Boys instead of a small garage... any other big chains better for this ?

 

[d33pt]

you probably wont be able to replace your timing belt yourself if you don't even know what it is. as for the other belts, i just replace them when they look bad or make noise. sometimes they make noise because the tensioner pulley is going bad...

 

[rh71]

I know next to nothing about cars... really wish I took shop class in HS.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: rh71
It's at 76k miles and the original belts are still in there. Apparently the alternator belt is squealing so I'll replace that one too. My question is... they say to replace belts at 60k miles ... which belts are they talking about? There's timing belts, A/C belt, alternator belt, and whatever else. Aren't timing belts a "set" or 3 alone ?

Which ones am I supposed to change "on schedule" and should I may as well replace the alternator belt instead of adjusting it (the squeal) ?

I'll probably bring it to Pep Boys instead of a small garage... any other big chains better for this ?

Check your owners manual, all cars are different today. BUT on average all belts, timing and Serp/V-belts, need to be replaced at 60K. DON'T wait for them to break or make funny sounds.

Also find a good independent shop, NOT a Pres.Tune, Firestone, Pepboys, etc....

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: Marlin1975

Also find a good independent shop, NOT a Pres.Tune, Firestone, Pepboys, etc....

See the thing about an independent garage is that we "know" a guy through my brother, but the last time I brought the other car to him, he said nothing was wrong with it (it's an obvious constant loud noise on the underbody)... so I really don't want to waste my time again there. And if I'm not going to bring it to a garage like his, I may as well go with "reputable" shops with big names. I'd like to know why I shouldn't (honest question).

 

[Eli]

Originally posted by: rh71

Originally posted by: Marlin1975

Also find a good independent shop, NOT a Pres.Tune, Firestone, Pepboys, etc....

See the thing about an independent garage is that we "know" a guy through my brother, but the last time I brought the other car to him, he said nothing was wrong with it (it's an obvious constant loud noise on the underbody)... so I really don't want to waste my time again there. And if I'm not going to bring it to a garage like his, I may as well go with "reputable" shops with big names. I'd like to know why I shouldn't (honest question).

Because they overcharge you and generally don't know sh!t. It would be better to go to a large, well known independant shop in your area.
Tell us what kind of car it is...

What do you mean by a constant loud noise on the underbody? You mean like, there's a hole in the exhaust piping? lol....

Even if they do the job right, and they most likely will.. changing belts is pretty low in the grand scheme of auto wrenching, but.. labor prices vary greatly. You're almost certain to find a better deal with a reputable independant shop.

Just don't go to the shady shop in town. You can see them from a mile away.

 

[Vette73]

Originally posted by: rh71

Originally posted by: Marlin1975

Also find a good independent shop, NOT a Pres.Tune, Firestone, Pepboys, etc....

See the thing about an independent garage is that we "know" a guy through my brother, but the last time I brought the other car to him, he said nothing was wrong with it (it's an obvious constant loud noise on the underbody)... so I really don't want to waste my time again there. And if I'm not going to bring it to a garage like his, I may as well go with "reputable" shops with big names. I'd like to know why I shouldn't (honest question).

You can ask roger about Precision Tune, I can tell ya about Firestone. But most of these national chains just tell the person working on the car, the more YOU SALE, the more YOU make. So a lot of mechanics will tell you, you need a lot more than you do. That way they make more money, even if your car does not need all they say.

Now with that said, I said find a GOOD independent shop, that you trust and can keep going back to. As after a while they will know your car inside and out, and they will also know the owner and how that owner takes care of that car, or does not take care of it.

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: Eli
What do you mean by a constant loud noise on the underbody? You mean like, there's a hole in the exhaust piping? lol....

Yeah probably... I could jack the car up and see if that's the problem myself... but since we "knew" someone ... (a lot of good that did).

 

[rh71]

*nvm*

 

[rh71]

more opinions welcome.

 

[brtspears2]

My rule for belts. 60k miles, or when the belts start to look like rubber bands in the sun for a while.

 

[Tiger]

You don't need to change a timing belt till it breaks or the car starts running funny for no apparent reason.
The worst thing the auto industry did was the serpentine belt. I had to change one after an idler seized up and shredded the belt. It ripped the dipstick out of the engine and wrapped it around the airconditioner compressor like a pretzel. Back in the good old days if a waterpump or alternator belt broke it didn't raise too much hell and you could limp home on what you had left. When a serpentine goes you lose everything.

 

[rh71]

I am pretty sure (I don't know the term) that when a belt goes in my engine, 3.2L SOHC V6 Isuzu, that the car won't grind to a halt... it'll still keep rolling. Read this in the Isuzu forum for my car. Does this have anything to do with serpentine vs. (other) belts or is it some other "safety" feature I'm thinking about ? Because funny thing is I heard of others on that forum say they have Serpentine belts. I assume that's a type of belt used as a timing belt and not a separate part ?

 

[LAUST]

Originally posted by: rh71
more opinions welcome.

There are actually some people that posted the Facts already... Owners manuals are reccomondations for when to change them and are good guidelines to follow, the other part of the fact is you should also check them and replace them as needed.

I have had seasons where my Blower belt lasted a full year... I also had a cheap Kelly Springfield belt begin to shread on me in 4 month's.

 

[Quixfire]

Originally posted by: rh71
I am pretty sure (I don't know the term) that when a belt goes in my engine, 3.2L SOHC V6 Isuzu, that the car won't grind to a halt... it'll still keep rolling. Read this in the Isuzu forum for my car. Does this have anything to do with serpentine vs. (other) belts or is it some other "safety" feature I'm thinking about ? Because funny thing is I heard of others on that forum say they have Serpentine belts. I assume that's a type of belt used as a timing belt and not a separate part ?

The serpentine belt is what is driven by the crank pulley and drives all of your accessories only needs to be replaced when, cracked, worn, or damaged. The timing belt is not visible; it is covered by your timing belt cover, front engine cover, and must be serviced at regular intervals. This is most likely what your owner manual is referring to, but I not an expert on Isuzus.

 

[jlee]

Originally posted by: Tiger
You don't need to change a timing belt till it breaks or the car starts running funny for no apparent reason.
The worst thing the auto industry did was the serpentine belt. I had to change one after an idler seized up and shredded the belt. It ripped the dipstick out of the engine and wrapped it around the airconditioner compressor like a pretzel. Back in the good old days if a waterpump or alternator belt broke it didn't raise too much hell and you could limp home on what you had left. When a serpentine goes you lose everything.

Depending on what you drive, losing the timing belt can be quite expensive...bent valves, etc..

 

[Evadman]

The accessory belts are relitively easy to change. those are the belts you can see. if it is a serpintine belt, it willt ake you all of 10 minutes to change. all you need is a breaker bar or a large ratchet.

If you have multible belts (which it sort of sounds like you do) it is more dificult because you have to losen the accessory (alternator, power steering pump, etc) to tension the belt, and you are supposed to use a tensioning tool as you can put too much tension on the belt.

As for a timing belt, there is quite a few things to remove, and I do not recomend it for someone who doesn't know engines at least pretty well. I can tell you that if it snaps, you are in deep sh!t. Usually, your valves and pistons occupy the same space in the cyl (this is called an interference engine) so if the timing belt snaps a piston can collide with a valve. trust me, this is not good. Usually though, the belt will strech or jump a cog before it snaps and this will make the engine run like crap, and you will bring it to a shop to get it fixed before the snapping occours.

 

[falconx80]

dude, your work place is like 10 miles away from where i live