Is there anything i can do to prevent/fix this. i read about a belt tensioner, but have no clue where to locate it. any pics would be greatly appreciated. thanks in advance

 

try belt dressing, but i tmight be your starter not disengaging from the flywheel fast enough, so your getting a squeal, dont qutoe me on that, but i recall reading a few posts a few months aback about this

 

if you are sure its the belts first take alot at them
see if theyre wearing thin, have and cracks and things of the sort
it might be time to replace them

 

the belt tensioner is to the left of the hose leading to the thermostat (near the alternator area)

as for the noise, check your belt tension 1st, if all is well, then you need new belts

Come to think of it I'm probably due for new belts. These are the original belts w/ close to 105K on them. They look rusty and make noise, the tension is good. Would I also be due for a new set of belts?

 

unless you wanna kiss your belts goodbye, that's not a good idea

I used belt-dressing once on a car I drove in high school. It had a mid to late 80s version of GM's 3800 V6 motor, one belt driving everything. It didn't take long enough for the belt to fly off to leave me stranded

 

When I start my car, the engine starts then a loud 1-2 second high pitched squeal comes out. Is this what you're talking about? I've been a little concerned about this because it's been happening ever since I bought the car.

I don't know if this is unique or not, but when I drive around and get the engine warmed up, turn it off, start it again, I don't hear the squeal anymore. Same thing goes if I park in really hot sun for a long time. Is this the starter or belts?

 

my car hs ben doing this sence i installed my underdrive pulley, so i thought it was normal, i felt alittle payon the tentioner puller during the install, could this be making the noise??

 

All the problems everyone in this thread is mentioning is belt related. Tighten them up.

 

agree >>> tighten your belts

 

Yep, I have this problem too. Tightened them... didn't work. Changed them... sound came back after a month. Some people have it, some don't. Must by a maxima thing.

 

No, it's not a maxima thing. Here is what happened to you:

Your belts were squeeling because they were a) too lose b) falling apart.
You changed your belts to new belts. They stopped squeeling.
A month goes by, and those factory belts stretch a little bit over time, meaning you have to RETIGHTEN THEM to stop them from squeeling. They're just made of rubber and thread, they will stretch out a little bit from factory spec after you buy them. Tighten them AGAIN. This happenes with every car, unless the person who changed them compensated for the fact that new belts will stretch a little bit in the first month, and overtightened them from the beginning.

 

OK, I will try that. I want to make sure I do it right then. The tightener is to the left of the valve cover, correct? And do I turn it clockwise or counter clockwise? ANd how much do i tighten it?

 

if you want to be sure that it's coming from your belts, start the engine and spray some silicone lubricant or WD-40 stuff on them. If the sound is still there, search for something else like tensioner, water pump, etc... If the sound dissapear, it's your belts. Change them if they are worn or thighten them if they seems ok. Don't overtighten them too much, it's not good for the pulley.

 

Can I tighten them myself or should I bring it to someone else? Approximate cost? Thanks

 

i looked at where the tensioner should be and its not there...im guessing someone took it off????
looked at my moms 97 gle and she has one. wtf happened to mine??? can i buy one at napa or do i have to go to a nissan dealer

 

WTF is that?? You don't have your tensionner in place???

 

You could prob get one from dealer. ight, I teightened mine a few turns, (i think it was counter clockwise) and it seems to ahve gone away. But well see cause it only happens when the car isn't warmed up.

 

clockwise tightens it. I was just doing that two hours ago. You need a size 14 socket or spanner

 

Just thought of some thing else- there's actually two places to tighten the belts. One is the one we're talking about right now. The other one is down below by the oil filter- you'd have to go under the car to get at that. They are independent of each other. Hopefully your problem is with the one up top not the one at the bottom

 

yea..mine is missing... no wonder mine squeal at startup. this cant be a good thing

 

Mine are still squeeling.

 

You guys have to bust out your chiltons or whatever the manual you own is, and actually READ on how to MEASURE how much to tighten the belts. You can't just be like "oh I turned the tensioner 4 turns." SO what? What does 4 turns mean? NOTHING. Get a ruler, and measure how much they stretch and see if they're within spec.

 

Be aware that the pulley the top tensioner is connected to is locked in place by a 14mm bolt in its center. If you simply try and crank the tensioner without breaking this bolt loose, you will break the tensioner.

1. Loosen 14mm pulley bolt. (the one in the center of the pulley)
2. Turn adjuster clockwise to increase belt tension. (a manual will describe how tight it needs to be.
3. Re-tighten pulley bolt.

The lower tensioner is probably for the other belt. (the Maxima has two belts)

I changed my belts at around 70-80k miles. It was sort of a PITA as far as belt changes go...

Good Luck!

 

my main tentioner has slight play in it, could it be causeing my start up squeak???

 

belt replacement cause was quoted to me 40 for the belts and 70 for labor. so as you can imagine i changed them myself. it is a pain especially if your like me and the bolt on the pully wouldn't loosen. so for the longes i couldn't tighten the belt like it needed to be. but its all fixed now

 

What is the easiest way to loosen the bolt?

 

any more thoughts?

 

geth the right size boxed in wrech, not sure what size. spray with some pb blaster (wd40 liquid wrench ect.) just to make sure you don't strip it. my dumb self tried using a size that was close but the nut is too tight and it striped. loosen the nut. only loosen it. don't take the nut off or unscrew it too far. do about 2 full turns and check if the pulley will move.then remove the belt and replace. then adjust the belt down and then retighten the bolt on the pulley

 

i was the one that was completely missing the belt tensioner. I bought the part (bolt) and they gave me a wave washer? with it. Should i just turn it on the bolt and see if my belts still squeel??? Or should i just turn it on and do what you said above??

 

The bolt is the one right under the tensioner right? How do you loosen it? Theres not enoguh room to fit a socket wrench in there. What did you use?

 

Anyone know how to get thisbolt loose?

 

I did it. Remove the wheel. Remove 4 screws retaining the inner wheel well plastic splash guard. Remove this splash guard. Voilą! you have clear access to the bolt with a socket.