Ultra Screeching Belt

[yangs13]

Cannot get my belt (a/c & alt) to stop screeching. it is really loud cannot figure what the hell is going on. its a whinny, high screeching noise. what i have done:

checked belt deflection -goodchecked bearing on belt tensioner pulley -goodchecked belt condition -goodlooked at it while running holding my hands over my ear. nothing looked out of place.sprayed a small amount of belt dressing on the belt. -kinda worked, but still screeches

it only seems to do it when it is cold, at initial start up. i'll tap the gas pedal to ~2500rpm and let it go back down to idle and it will sometimes go away. it'll also screech if say, i pull into a driveway where rpm's are at 1500 and i just downshifted to second.

assistance please...

[loystock]

If you have the right belt and correct tension, that high screeching noise is indicative of failing bearing in the Idler Pulley. BTW, the noise may be coming from a failing A/C clutch assembly. Turn off the A/C and see if the noise goes away.

Since you work for Autozone, then you have access to Idler Pulley and try it. I got a Dayco 89134 pulley from Amazon for @ $20. Dimension is the same as OEM and has sealed bearing so no need to install the bearing cover (it may cause Idler Pulley to freeze if installed without a spacer).

[yangs13]

hope its not the a/c compressor...that'll cost a pretty penny. i spun the pulley in my hand and it spun fine...i may just say screw it and get a new pulley its only $20. we'll see tomorrow...

thanks loystock.

[loystock]

An impending bearing failure is hard to detect just by manually spinning it as the problem may only show up at certain load condition.

[yangs13]

alright...fixed my problem. kind of. it turns out the a/c compressor wouldn't spin initially...but after a few jogs it starts to spin; the clutch is probably going out. so, for now, i just bypassed it with a shorter belt (36"). its still cold in wisconsin and i maybe deal with it when school is done.

[loystock]

You have the resources to replace the clutch assembly, if it's the one that's failing. See thread below

zerothread?id=433751