General TIme/Mileage Replace Belts

[Gebo]

For all the belts other than the timing belt, what is your replacement guideline?

Every 50K or 8 yrs? Every 100K?

I'm making a maintenance schedule for the 11 cars I maintain and I just want a "safe" guideline of the AC belt, PS belt, Alt belt or serpentine belt.

 

[jayjr1105]

I think rule of thumb is replace all the belts with the timing belt every 100K.

 

[Oscar_Ruitt]

It seems like serpentine belt material has gotten really good the last decade or so. I just did a gates belt component kit on my '13 grand caravan a few months ago because the last year or so it had a very minor squeal on cold start some cold mornings. It was at 200k miles and the belt really looked good, no cracking or shine at all, I would think very unlikely to actually fail anytime soon. The gates kit did fix the slight squeal. I'm not sure there needs to be a fixed time/miles, just visual inspection or if it's making noise is probably a safe way to go.

Edit: I would definitely follow any manufacturer guideline on timing belts though, risk of catastrophic failure is not worth pushing it!

 

[gathermewool]

I think we've all seen the pictures of bad belts online (I have a Haynes manual for reference, too).

How often do you guys see ribs missing or other obvious signs that the belt needs to be replaced? I've replaced belts after 100k+ miles before, but the only outward indication of wear was on the BACK of the belt, the non-ribbed side; they look glazed and worn down due to friction with auto tensioner.

I've also replaced belts due to excessive squealing, which usually made things better, but didn't always completely fix the issue. Case-in-point, the belt in our FXT used to squeal when cold and/or wet and sometimes just because. After replacing it 30k miles ago it now only randomly squeals on some cool wet mornings.

Great post - I don't have a set criteria for replacing it, but if I had to have one it would be every 100k miles w/out any other indications of it needed to be repaired.

 

[mclasser]

When they start chirping.

 

[cronk]

Most modern good quality belts are made with epdm synthetic rubber. These will last about 8 years or 100k without a problem. Many go longer without an issue.
The oem belt on my wifes Nissan Quest was replaced at about 8 years old and over 90k miles. It still looked great, no cracks or visible issues. Was getting a minor chirp on cold damp mornings. New belt took care of the chirp.

Just use a good name brand, Bando, Continental, Dayco, Gates, or oem.

 

[super20dan]

my 99 Silverado still has its original serpentine. I did change the ac belt.

 

[atikovi]

Originally Posted by mclasser
When they start chirping.


When they break.

 

[double vanos]

I've actually had to replace noisy tensioners with the belt still good. Replaced the belt of course but the old one got put in the trunk.

 

[92saturnsl2]

I change at the timing belt interval-- first timing belt service, it gets a new serpentine belt.

On a car with a timing chain, every 100k. I do check them periodically for cracks or signs of wear, the newer ones of the last 10-15+ years seem to hit 100k no problem.

On a used vehicle I buy, the serpentine belt gets an immediate inspection and if it's suspect at all, it gets replaced, then put on a 100k interval thereafter.

 

[slacktide_bitog]

when they look really bad, if they squeak, or when replacing something driven by the belt

 

[bbhero]

I went 177k miles on the OEM belt... it looked really good even then.

Replaced it with a OEM belt.

 

[CR94]

I replaced the first two V-belts (non-serpentine) on the Mazda at about 222k apiece. The third failed early due to an oil leak, so it doesn't count. #4 was still going at the end (606k total on the car).

 

[msmoke00]

At the shop we use the combination of the wear tool and time. Since modern belts don't crack like the old ones, anything over 6 years gets marked in the "yellow" on our inspection or when worn by the gauge.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GZvPMnE50UM

 

[circuitsmith]

The belt on my previous Toyota Matrix started to chirp on startup after 4 years and 25K miles.
The OEM belt had a reputation for short life.
The replacement Goodyear Gatorback looked fine for the next 8 years and 43K miles.