how much damage to engine after driving after serpentine belt broke?

I was driving on highway 65mph and lost AC then power steering. My battery light came on and I got off road. I let it sit like 45 min then drive right to dealer but more lights came on as I was driving. Today dealer called and said my serpentine belt went and asked how far I drove (8 miles) and said I damaged my engine so they have to open it all up to see how badly it may be damaged. How much $$ could this be? I just had my 60,000 mile service at about 64,000 miles and no one said anything about any wear and tear on the belt.

My car has 69500 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.

Experienced mechanics share their insights in answering this question :
Hi there. I’ll be transparent with you, there is no way for me to determine the extent of the damage or what it may cost without performing an inspection on the vehicle. During the last service were you provided with an inspection report? Did the belt make any noise prior to the service? Did a belt driven component fail and cause the belt failure? Did the engine overheat on the way to the dealership? There are many other unknowns that could be at fault and can happen anytime without warning. The best advice I can give you is to have the dealer show you why the engine needs to be disassembled. Then have them provide estimates for all of your options then shop around; remember that if they perform a diagnosis you will still be responsible for that charge. Weigh the costs of what they offer; engine rebuild vs. engine replacement. And remember, you have the option to get a second opinion. Your Mechanic has several technicians available that can assist you with many of your needed services, diagnostics, and repairs 7 days a week at www.yourmechanic.com. Unfortunately, Your Mechanic does not offer engine repair/replacement services at this time.

How to Identify and Fix Common car Problems ?

Our sources include academic articles, blog posts, and personal essays from experienced mechanics :

Since the serpentine belt helps provide power to cool the engine, a faulty belt can cause the car engine to overheat as the water pump will not turn. As soon as the engine begins to overheat, have it inspected by a mechanic as it can cause a breakdown and cause engine damage if left overheated.
The alternator powers all the vehicle electrics and recharges the car battery. If the serpentine belt breaks, the alternator stops generating electrical power. If that happens, your headlights will dim, the radio won`t work, and the battery will die.
How long will my car run with a broken serpentine belt? There are a few variables involved in the answer, but it should be able to run between 20 to 90 minutes. If it is a hot summer day, your engine can overheat very quickly without the coolant being pumped through the radiator.
Only for a very short amount of time. Without the belt, neither the alternator nor the water pump will be driven. That means that the car battery will run down and the engine will overheat. Once either of those things happen, you`ll have to stop driving and be stuck wherever you ended up.
If your serpentine belt is failing, you may notice performance issues with your vehicle. The vehicle may frequently overheat. Your air conditioning or power steering may fail to work or not work properly. You may notice your vehicle battery failing to recharge if the alternator is affected by a bad serpentine belt.
When your timing belt is broken, you won`t be able to drive your car at all. Oftentimes, the timing belt will break while the car is in motion. This can cause serious damage to cylinder head hardware like rocker arms, push rods, or valves.
Loosing the serpentine belt should not affect the engine timing.
No, your car keeps going, it does not directly affect the ignition computer or the transmission. What the serpentine belt powers is the water pump, the fan (sometimes, more in older cars), the power steering pump and the air conditioning and the alternator.
Recommended Services. Hi there. I would not drive the vehicle if I were you until you have the serpentine belt replaced. If it`s partially torn, it will continue to shred and may cause additional damage to the pulleys or other components it powers, so I would not take the risk.
HOW LONG CAN YOU DRIVE WITH A BAD IDLER PULLEY? You can easily drive your vehicle for tens of thousands of kilometres with a bad idler pulley, until the engine components continue to function normally. But, if the engine belt slips then you may lose control of the vehicle while driving.
You`ll lose power steering, the A/C will quit, your battery will eventually die, and the engine might overheat. Plus, it could also damage the engine accessories it controls. This is why it is so important to get your serpentine belt replaced on a regular schedule.
Belts: A belt decreases speed in proportion to the diameters of its pulleys or sheaves. The pulley on a motor shaft is typically smaller than the one on the machine shaft. The speed ratio is R = DL /DS, where DL = diameter of large pulley, and DS = diameter of small pulley.
It can squeak, squeal, chirp and clunk, imitating a bad engine-driven accessory or engine bearing. These noises can fool even the most experienced mechanic and lead to an expensive misdiagnosis. Squeals and chirps are definitely the two most common serpentine belt noises and usually result from different problems.
A broken serpentine belt can surely lead to you being stranded. At best your battery will be dead. At worst, you can have issues with engine damage. It it rare for a serpentine belt to break in a way that causes engine damage, but it can happen.
You`ll lose power steering, the A/C will quit, your battery will eventually die, and the engine might overheat. Plus, it could also damage the engine accessories it controls. This is why it is so important to get your serpentine belt replaced on a regular schedule.
You may not believe this but the knocking sound you hear coming from your car`s engine could actually be the accessory belt. JTR Repair advises that when this belt gets too loose, it can make knocking noises as it makes contact with the engine. Tightening the belt will alleviate the knocking sound.

Relevant Questions and Answers :

the most relevant questions and answers related to your specific issue

how much damage to engine after driving after serpentine belt broke?
ANSWER : Hi there. I’ll be transparent with you, there is no way for me to determine the extent of the damage or what it may cost without performing an inspection on the vehicle. During the last service were you provided with an inspection report? Did the belt make any noise prior to the service? Did a belt driven component fail and cause the belt failure? Did the engine overheat on the way to the dealership? There are many other unknowns that could be at fault and can happen anytime without warning. The best advice I can give you is to have the dealer show you why the engine needs to be disassembled. Then have them provide estimates for all of your options then shop around; remember that if they perform a diagnosis you will still be responsible for that charge. Weigh the costs of what they offer; engine rebuild vs. engine replacement. And remember, you have the option to get a second opinion. Your Mechanic has several technicians available that can assist you with many of your needed services, diagnostics, and repairs 7 days a week at www.yourmechanic.com. Unfortunately, Your Mechanic does not offer engine repair/replacement services at this time.

Can front wheel drive car engine power rear wheel drive
ANSWER : Anything is possible with enough engineering. The changes you are looking at would take major structural changes and would definitely not be an easy job. You could possibly consult a manufacturing engineer to get more details on how this could actually be carried out and whether it would be feasible.

hey i had a belt break while traveling on my 2004 honda pilot. It is the small belt and not the serpentine belt. The mechanic t
ANSWER : Hello. The smaller belt is known as your timing belt, and it works inside the engine to keep mechanical components aligned with each other during the compression cycle. The serpentine belt, which is the big belt, drives the alternator, water pump, AC compressor, and a couple of other components. If the small belt broke it is likely the timing belt. This will cause the car to stall, lights to illuminate, and can even cause serious damage to the engine. Typically replacing a timing belt is a lot more complicated and expensive than replacing a serpentine belt. You may want to receive a second opinion on the car before you go ahead with repairs.

My engine belt is coming off slowly now it is halfway out. Does this mean i need to replace the belt or it is a faulty engine?
ANSWER : When the drive belt is walking itself off the drive pulleys, it can be due to tension or pulley damage. If the belt tensioner spring is weak or broken, the belt will be loose and can begin to come off the pulleys. Also, if any of the pulleys, whether crankshaft, water pump, etc, are damaged and not spinning properly, this can put a side load on the belt and begin pushing it off any or all pulleys. Have a technician inspect the vehicle as soon as possible to avoid over heating the engine.

belt is missing, squeeling sound before stopped engine, once stopped saw smoke coming from engine department
ANSWER : Hi there:

In cases like then when you’re not sure what component needs to be replaced, it’s always best to have one of our professional mobile mechanics complete a car is hard to start inspection first. This will allow the mechanic to review your car for damage that is causing the symptoms you’re experiencing and then recommend the right replacement or repairs be completed to resolve your issue.

Can you change the defected water pump without changing its defected belt (which is the drive belt and only belt in this model of
ANSWER : Hello. Yes you can replace the water pump without replacing the serpentine belt. If the belt is worn, and it breaks while you are driving, you can damage a lot of other components in that area. Typically the price of a serpentine belt is relatively inexpensive. You will have to remove the belt to replace the water pump anyway. Since you are likely going to have to purchase a new pump, we do recommend that you purchase a belt at the same time. You SHOULD replace the belt if it is worn, and this is a perfect time to do it. It is not necessarily required, but you are putting yourself at risk of another break down at a later time. Not to mention if the belt is already worn, manipulating off and back onto the vehicle while changing the water pump can further damage it, and shorten the amount of time its got left. Belts should be replaced before they break, as to the amount of damage they can cause when they do break. Again, you may be able to get away with not replacing the belt right now, but if its as worn as you say, its going to break sooner than later and should be replaced.

Serpentine belt broke, replaced it but lost AC. It broke again 2 days later
ANSWER : It would’ve been helpful to know if the A/C was working fine or having a problem when the first belt broke. I suspect that the A/C pulley is binding, causing the second and first belt to break. If the A/C was working good right up to the first belt breaking then the first belt may have gotten caught up in the A/C pulley and clutch. This would cause the lack of A/C engagement and pulley to bind. Either way it may be caused by the A/C compressor.

The clutch and pulley should be inspected to see if they are faulty or if the old belt was binding it. I’d suggest getting the A/C inspected by a qualified mechanic, such as one from YourMechanic. Once on site, a mechanic will be able to diagnose the symptoms you’ve described and help you make the necessary repairs.

My harmonic balancer/crankshaft pulley broke in my 1996 3000GT. When installing new one, I noticed that part of the drive belt tha
ANSWER : Hi there. Absolutely, there is a chance that there could be a damaged timing belt or it has jumped time. However, there is also the possibility that the debris has damaged the crank/cam position sensors. With a capable scan tool/ oscilloscope the sensor signals can be inspected. I suggest having a qualified technician perform an inspection to avoid replacing unnecessary parts. Your Mechanic has several technicians that can assist you with a car does not start inspection.