Elantra pulley misalignment

I have a 2000 Elantra that had the timing belt changed(it broke). It
seems to run fine and has plenty of power, but we're getting a belt
whine and screech when it's cold. The repair shop had reefed on the
belts(alternator and a/c compressor?) so they were very tight, so I
loosened them slightly to see if that was the problem. It didn't help.
I was looking at it, and it looks like the two driven pulleys may be
slightly out of line with the crank pulley. Could this be my
imagination, or is there a way to put the crank pulley on so that it's
not properly aligned.

 

It'd be so difficult to misalign the crank pulley as to be nearly
impossible. It's possible the crank pulley is coming apart. If the noise
is loud enough to be called a "screech," then your belt(s) are likely too
loose. Pay particular attention to the alternator belt. In fact, it
needs to be quite tight to not screech. To see if the noise is indeed
coming from the belts, you can take a can of spray-lube like wd-40 and
spray just a little on the belt to see if the noise changes or goes away.

 

Rather than lubricating it with a potentially harmful product like
WD-40, wouldn't it make more sense to use a belt dressing on it like
"Belt-Ease"?

 

Nothing harmful in a short spurt of WD40 Brian. It's basically useless
stuff, but it will help to identify something like belt slip with no
after-affects. Belt-Ease on the other hand is something I would stay away
from. A product like that is an attempt to circumvent proper maintenance
and attention and IMHO will ultimately result in more harm than good.

 

I'm with Mike on this one, Brian. I've found belt dressing --I'm not
familiar with the particular product you've mentioned, so correct me if
I'm off base-- to make a mess on the belts and the pulleys and to remain
there and remain gummy, requiring substantial cleanup and making more
issues at a later date.

I specified "just a little" to help insure the reader understood we were
just looking for a change, not looking to lubricate the belt.

 

i thought using a belt dressing on a ribbed belt is a no no???

 

The WD-40 will evaporate fairly quickly and won't cause any harmful
affects. The idea here isn't too lubricate the belt permanently, just
long enough to tell if slip is causing the noise.

Personally, I'd just tighten the belt to the proper tension and see if
the noise goes away. If it does, then you are done. If it doesn't,
then replace the belt.


Matt

 

Using belt dressing on ANY belt is a no-no. If a properly tensioned
belt is making noise, then it needs to be replaced.


Matt

 

Fair enough. I've only used "Belt Ease" a couple of times and it doesn't
create a mess. I understand your concern, since anything that attracts
and holds dirt would create more problems than it solves.