What is the correct procedure for tightening the belt tensioner on a 2001 Chevy Monte Carlo? We put the new belt on.

The serpentine belt was worn & shredding. We got the correct replacement belt and installed it. I cranked the car over and turned it off after about 30 seconds, just to test it. I went out next morning and looked at the belt – there was about 4'' of slack. We tried again. I started it and turned the wheels to back out of the parking space. Steering froze. We tried again. Home from work, I popped the hood and peeked at the belt. It was on, it was properly tight, but I observed that the tensioner ''pulley'' was not aligned with the lower pulley, the belt was a
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The belt tensioner on your vehicle should have an automatic tensioner, however, some models have the manual tensioner. Tighten the tensioner to where the belt is tight but loose in the middle length area as about the width of the belt. This ensures that the drive belt is tight and not pulling too much on any accessory pulley. If you need further assistance with your drive belt replacement, then seek out a professional, such as one from Your Mechanic, to help you.

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Belt tension is adjusted by moving the drive motor position (forward or rearward) in an iterative process until the belt tension meets specification. Remove the drive belt. It is recommended that you walk the belt off the smaller drive motor pulley.
Insert the ½” extension/breaker bar to rotate the smooth pulley tensioner arm counterclockwise to remove the bolt/pin. Slowly allow the arm to rotate clockwise to tension the accessory drive belt. Insert the ½” extension/breaker bar to rotate the grooved pulley tensioner arm counterclockwise to remove the bolt/pin.
The way to remove tension will be to pivot the tensioner using a tool (1) on the nut of the tensioner pulley, or (2) a special tool-lug outcropping from the tensioner or (3) in a square opening in the bracket of the tensioner pulley, cover or cap that protects the spring.
Insert the wrench or place the socket over the bolt on the tensioner and twist it away from the belt to relieve the tension on it. Depending on the positioning of the tensioner pulley you may need to twist the tensioner clockwise or counterclockwise.
The belt should have about a half an inch of play when at the appropriate tightness. If there is less than a half an inch, the belt will need to be loosened, if there is more, it will need to be tightened.
The serpentine belt uses pulleys and a belt tensioner to transfer power from the engine crankshaft to all the other components, says TheDrive.com.
The drive belt tensioner powers the crankshaft pulley to the water pump pulley, which is engaged and disengaged by an electric actuator. All this innovative system results in less mechanical loss during the disconnection phase of the water pump.
Description. Replacement 17mm socket for serpentine belt tool set 3680D. Used in serpentine belt tool kit numbers 3680 & 89000.
Belt manufacturers recommend that the tension ratio for a system with 180° of contact on each sheave should be no tighter than 5:1 (when a new belt has been installed) and no looser than 8:1 (after the belt has run-in).
A seized or loose drive belt tensioner can cause the belt to snap, which will disables those accessories and can cause problems such as overheating, a dead electrical system and battery, or a disabled AC system.
Tensioners can be either static (fixed) or dynamic (moving) in operation. A static tensioner means that the tension is set and the tensioner fastened into place to keep that specific tension against the belt during drive system operation.
The main physical difference between an idler pulley and tensioner pulley is a simple adjustable bolt! However, in terms of function and purpose, an idler pulley is responsible for guiding a belt drive in an engine or mechanical system, while a tensioner pulley is responsible for tensioning the drive belt.
A tensioner bearing consists of a base, tensioner arm, spring, and pulley. It provides pressure to a timing belt that drives other pulleys while easing the strain on that belt.
The belt is attached to both the crankshaft and these systems, and transfers power from the engine to drive each of these components. The drive belt tensioner is responsible for keeping the tension in the drive belt, which allows it to continue moving and transferring power.
An over-tightened belt can burn out any bearing that the belt rotates on, including alternator, power steering pump, A/C compressor, idler pulleys, etc. An over-tightened timing belt can ruin any pulley bearing it is connected with.
The tensioner is located on the outside of a serpentine belt which is the smooth side of the belt. It puts tension on the belt to keep it tight. The serpentine belt stretches over time, so the tensioner puts more tension on it to keep it tight. A broken tensioner might click or squeal.
If you have a manual belt tensioner, this is an easy fix. Simply use a wrench to adjust the tension to the proper level. If the drive belt shows any wear, it should be replaced. If you have a bad spring or hydraulic drive belt tensioner, it is not repairable.
The most common causes of timing belt tensioner failure include: Wear and tear: On a new mechanical timing belt tensioner system, the timing belt tensioner spring is wound tightly by two tension rods. Over time, the spring stretches out and loses its tension. As a result, the entire tensioner becomes too weak.
V-Belt Frequency Meter

Measure belt span and measure the force required to deflect any one of the belts 1/64” for every inch of span length.

For a belt drive system, the motor torque required during constant velocity is simply the total axial force (Fa) on the belt multiplied by the radius (r1) of the drive pulley.
Check belt alignment whenever you maintain or replace belts or whenever you remove or install pulleys.
The total of the starting and operating tensions. In the average conveyor this is considered to be the same as the tight side tension.
There are complicated formulas for determining pulley ratios but in generic, layman terms, simply divide the driven component (pump) by RPM, the driver component (motor or engine) rated by RPM to get the required ratio. In the example below, the pump RPM is 1070, for full output, while the motor is 1750 RPM.
Trummeter is used for the measuring of belt tension and for controlling the strand force of V-belts , power belts, tooth belts or similar. …

Relevant Questions and Answers :

the most relevant questions and answers related to your specific issue

What is the correct procedure for tightening the belt tensioner on a 2001 Chevy Monte Carlo? We put the new belt on.
ANSWER : The belt tensioner on your vehicle should have an automatic tensioner, however, some models have the manual tensioner. Tighten the tensioner to where the belt is tight but loose in the middle length area as about the width of the belt. This ensures that the drive belt is tight and not pulling too much on any accessory pulley. If you need further assistance with your drive belt replacement, then seek out a professional, such as one from Your Mechanic, to help you.

Old belt was sqeeking, new belt does not but it slips off constantley. The old belt stays on though. Why is this?
ANSWER : Check to be sure that the new belt is actually the right part number or, better yet, use an OEM (dealer) belt. Also, be sure the tensioner is the right part number or use an OEM sourced tensioner. Check to be sure that all of the pulleys and accessories (e.g., alternator, water pump, A/C compressor) that are driven by the serpentine belt are all operating in the same plane. It is not unusual for the pulley on the crankshaft harmonic balancer pulley to move (generally outward) relative to its original position. The pulley is rubber bonded and over time can move. If that pulley moves, that means that the belt groves are no longer running in a perfect plane and that alone can cause slipping. If you request serpentine belt inspection a certified Mechanic, dispatched by YourMechanic right to your location, will identify the problem and thence get the issue resolved for you promptly. If you have further questions or concerns, do not hesitate to re-contact YourMechanic as we are always here to help you.

We have a new battery, new alternator, new coil pk, new master fuse and the car still won’t hold power.
ANSWER : Hi there. The only thing that I could think possible is causing your problem is that something may not have been correctly installed while your son was completing this maintenance. However, if your engine was difficult to start before this service, it’s possible there are different components that are damaged that simply didn’t resolve the issue. The only way of knowing what is going on with your Trailblazer would be to have one of our mobile mechanics in your area come to your location and complete a car is hard to start inspection.

Serpentine belt is rubbing on the engine cover at the belt tensioner pulley 2004 Hyundai Tiburon
ANSWER : Hi there – I would start by doing a visual inspection of the serpentine belt, and the pulleys – are they visually in line? If not, which pulley is out of line in the direction of the engine cover? Are there bushings on the alternator mount which have softened, and are allowing the alternator to "give" such that the serpentine belt is close to the cover? The crankshaft pulley is not likely moving at all. Is the cover where the rubbing occurs coming loose, and moving into the serpentine belt? For assistance, I would recommend a serpentine belt replacement by a mobile, professional mechanic, such as one from YourMechanic, who will come to your location, diagnose this problem, give you an accurate assessment of damage and cost estimate for repairs.

After belt replacement, belt tensioner squeaks and is loose
ANSWER : More likely mileage and time wore the tensioner out. The tensioner bearing wears out with mileage – it’s good to replace the tensioner pulley/bearing when replacing the belt. The tensioner itself is spring-actuated, and the spring can get weak over the years. The squeaking is likely from the tensioner bearing itself. If you decide to get it fixed, consider YourMechanic, as a certified technician can help you replace your belt tensioner as necessary.

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.

Belts are cracked and need replacing, okay to leave off a/c belt?
ANSWER : Hello. If the belt driving the A/C compressor only drives the A/C compressor and nothing else, you can remove it with no consequences. The fan shroud is not optional equipment however as it has both a cooling system function and a safety function.

Depending on your climate, you might consider diagnosing the A/C system and repairing it. If you use a service such as YourMechanic, it will often be economical enough to do it, particularly if the fault is limited.

Even if the compressor shaft sealing is leaking (would be likely after 25 years), that is fixable in the field. Feel free to contact YourMechanic if you have additional needs relative to this or the replacement of your power steering, alternator, A/C belts.

I got a new battery new alternator put in but my battery just gets drained I keep having to buy new batterys
ANSWER : This may be a sign of a failing voltage regulator or potentially a bad grounding problem causing a draw on the system. The voltage regulator is a unit that regulates the charging of the battery by the alternator. Often times this will result in the alternator allowing too much power to be delivered to the battery resulting in damaging wires and prematurely sometimes destroying the battery. In other cases it may result in the alternator not supplying enough power to the battery, resulting in undercharging the battery or not charging it at all. In either case, I would recommend having an expert from YourMechanic come to your location to diagnose your vehicle’s charging system.