What would cause the serpentine belt to come off?
Belt coming off: Pulley misalignment, belt misalignment on pulley, defective tensioner, or bearing wear in tensioner, idler or driven accessories.
What happens if alternator belt snaps?
The serpentine belt is also known as an alternator belt, fan belt, or accessory drive belt. If your serpentine belt wears out, becomes damaged or contaminated, or breaks, engine accessories will not be able to spin at the proper speed, leading to decreased power to the electrical system.
What does a broken belt in a tire feel like?
However, they can occur from improper mounting, degraded and aged rubber, extreme heat, oversteering, and debris. Belts break into small pieces and change the shape of the tire. The broken bits cause bumps in the tire, making it lumpy and causing a bad ride on the vehicle.
When to know if your serpentine drive belt is bad?
Check for cracks, chunks missing, abrasions, rib separation, uneven rib wear, and damaged ribs. If you notice any of these, it is time to replace your serpentine/drive belt. As soon as you notice a squealing noise, loss of power steering, the engine overheating, or the belt looks bad, call a mechanic immediately to diagnose the problem further.
When to replace a belt due to misalignment?
Inspect and replace all accessories / pulleys that are difficult to rotate (i.e. rough/seized bearings), or show excessive wobble / free rock Warning: Any existing misalignment condition probably caused pre-mature wear of the belt ribs on the old belt. A new belt is recommended once the accessory drive has been realigned.
When to replace the belt on your car?
Many belts will function quite well with a few bits missing. But if there are a lot of chunks gone, or if several notches appear close together, replace the drive belt right away – this is just a disaster waiting to happen. If one side is wearing unevenly, you could have a misaligned belt.
What happens if your drive belt is damaged?
If your drive belt is damaged, don’t take chances. You could drive for miles without a problem, or you could end up stranded by the side of the road. Worst case scenario, a damaged belt could cause extensive damage to other vehicle components.