Well, I was driving down the highway going about 90 mph when all of a sudden I hear a chunking noise in the passenger side front wheelwell....then it moves to the passenger side rear wheelwell then I look in the rear view mirror and see a black particle in the road. Following that my battery light and the emergency brake light on the dash both light up. I pull over and check under the car and brakes on each wheel as well as the battery and all is good. I continue on my way back to school. After classes are over I go to the nissan dealership and they show me where the belt should be and it isnt. I was wondering if it is common for them to just fall off when they need to be replaced or what may have caused it to fall off. Any ideas?

 

Yeah yor belt broke. Either, look after your car a bit better, or the belt failed. Probably the latter. Just sell the old B1TCH before she really falls apart. PS I need comments on VQ25DE > VQ30DE thread.

 

Well, periodic checking of the belts will ensure that it won't break suddenly on you. The belts should be smooth but not glazed, with no major cracks on it (stress marks, however, are normal). Belt tension is described in all three shop manuals (FSM, Chiltons, Haynes).

As a general rule, replacement of the accessory belts every 60k is a good idea. As for the valve timing, the VQ's have a timing chain and that doesn't ever need to be replaced.

 

I had the same thing happen to me a few weeks ago, only it was because the idle pully fell off...causing the alternator belt to loose tension and fall off to.

Scary feeling, isn't it!

 

Same EXACT thing happened to me a long time ago when I had a Chevy. I was driving for a week without an alternator belt.

Suffice to say, I didn't really pay much attention to the belts and replace them on time.

Luckily for you and me, the belt only drives accessories, just replace it, and be careful to replace after 60k or so miles.

DW

 

I just had a tune-up 5,000 miles ago, when I hit 150,000, and they didnt say a thing about the belts being worn or cracked. I dunno, maybe it was just a freek thing because it was only 23 degrees when I started my car yesterday

Kirk

 

Well, your belt wouldn't have been due for a change for another 30,000 miles. Either they didn't check it, or they loosened the pulley enough that it slipped off. At a full tune up they should have checked the belt condition and tension. I would hold them responsible for the belt falling off and refuse payment for replacement.

 

Cold weather makes your car more fragile. The cold makes your oil thicker, so the battery has to work harder to turn over the engine when starting the car. The rubber belts become more brittle, therefore any weakeness they may have developed will become more apparent. You use the defroster more, which place more electrical load on the alternator, etc etc. Cars, like me, just don't like the cold

Of course, it could also be a bad job by the mechanic, as the others have mentioned.

DW