I decided to change the alternator after my car died while I was making a left turn. During the procedure, I noticed my drive belt was cracked so I bought a new one and put it on as well. After I was done, I took it for a test run and I heard a very very loud shrill squealing noise as I accelerated. I decided to tighten the drive belt tensioner some more but the noise still follows after another test run. I followed the instructions on motorvate.ca and for the drive belt, the site said that the belt should defect around 3.8-4.1mm. Wasn't quite sure what that meant so I just tightened the belt tensioner all the way. Could that have anything to do with it?

Currently, I really have no clue what to do. Is it possible the noise could be coming from the manufacturer's label attached to the new drive belt? I'd appreciate ANY help. Thanks!

 

It sounds like the belt is too loose. If you tighten the pulley in the right position, you shouldn't need to tighten the tensioner all the way.

 

But what would the right position for the pulley be? Shouldn't the belt tensioner tighten the belt?

 

Are you sure you got the right belt size? The belt shoud be tight and you should have room on the tensioner to tighten it up as it breaks in. If you didn't take off the tensioner it's in the right position. You might need another belt. Good luck

 

I am assuming you loosened the idler pulley bolt when you removed the belt. If you pull down on the idler pulley as you are tightening the bolt with the new belt on, the belt will already be slightly snug. Then you use the tension adjustment right above the idler pulley to tighten the belt.

 

this pertains more to the 4th gen forum