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- Jeep Grand Cherokee ZJ 1993 to 1998 Why is Serpentine Belt Squeaking or Squealing
Guide to diagnose trouble and recommended solutions.
Browse all: Powertrain: Engine Diagnostics
Belt Squeal
07-23-2011, 11:26 AM
#31
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Year: 1988 & 1990
Model: Cherokee
Engine: Inline 6
According to Haynes, if the pulleys are between 7 and 11 inches apart, center to center, the belt should deflect 1/4", if they are 12 to 16 inches apart the belt should deflect 1/2".
It doesn't have anything to do with this conversation but at the end of the section on drive belt adjustment it says
"When replacing a serpentine drivebelt ( used on later models), make sure the new belt is routed correctly or the water pump could turn backwards, causing overheating ( see illustrations). Also, the belt must completely engage the grooves in the pulleys. "
I wonder how many of the "engine overheating" threads we've seen are due to incorrectly routed serpentine belts.
It doesn't have anything to do with this conversation but at the end of the section on drive belt adjustment it says
"When replacing a serpentine drivebelt ( used on later models), make sure the new belt is routed correctly or the water pump could turn backwards, causing overheating ( see illustrations). Also, the belt must completely engage the grooves in the pulleys. "
I wonder how many of the "engine overheating" threads we've seen are due to incorrectly routed serpentine belts.
07-25-2011, 02:01 PM
#32
Serpentine belt problems usually result from one of three causes: a defective belt tensioner (or in our case improper tension); misalignment of a pulley; or, defective bearings in the tensioner, idler, or one of accessories driven by the belt (including the water pump).
Belt noise can be hard to isolate, as the sound may seem to be coming from an accessory drive, such as the alternator or air conditioning compressor. A noise that occurs only when the vehicle accelerates is likely to be a slipping belt, as is a noise that occurs only when the car is started cold. Chirping is caused when a pulley is misaligned, so that the belt ridges initially contact the sides of the sides of the grooves and then slide downward along the groove’s sides as they seat in the pulley.
Do not apply “belt dressing” to a serpentine belt in an attempt to quiet a belt or cure slipping. Belt dressing is a gooey, tar-like substance designed to cure V belt slipping by making the belt sticky. At best, it is a temporary fix, even on a V belt. But, when applied to a serpentine belt, the dressing will be spread into the pulley grooves. Once there, it will attract and hold dirt and grit which is a definite if you go offroading. The dirt will start the belt slipping again and all of the dirt and belt dressing will have to be cleaned out of the pulley grooves before a new belt is installed.
Belt noises can be diagnosed with a spray bottle of water. With the engine running and the sound audible, lightly mist the grooved side of the belt with water. If the noise disappears or lessens, but then shortly returns, the problem is probably a misaligned pulley. If the noise immediately increases after the belt is misted, the belt is slipping.
Another trick is reversing the belt: take it off and put it back on so that it travels in what would have been its backward direction as originally installed. If the noise goes away or gets much softer, the problem is a misaligned pulley. This diagnostic works because flipping the belt changes the direction of the misalignment from the belt’s perspective. If reversing the belt does not temporarily eliminate the noise, the problem is something other than misaligned pulleys.
Next, examine the belt itself. Glazing at the edges of a serpentine belt, or on its ridges or in the grooves, results from the belt slipping. It indicates that friction between the belt and the accessory drive pulley(s) created by slipping has overheated the belt.
Fraying at the edge of a belt indicates pulley misalignment. The edge frays because it is scraping on the top edge of an accessory drive pulley side as the belt feeds into it.
Fluid contamination attacks the rubber surface of the belt. All of the automotive fluids that can leak onto a belt—oil, power steering fluid, coolant—are petroleum based and will attack rubber. Once on the belt, any of these fluids will be distributed over the pulley groove surfaces, making them slippery and attracting dirt.
Belt noise can be hard to isolate, as the sound may seem to be coming from an accessory drive, such as the alternator or air conditioning compressor. A noise that occurs only when the vehicle accelerates is likely to be a slipping belt, as is a noise that occurs only when the car is started cold. Chirping is caused when a pulley is misaligned, so that the belt ridges initially contact the sides of the sides of the grooves and then slide downward along the groove’s sides as they seat in the pulley.
Do not apply “belt dressing” to a serpentine belt in an attempt to quiet a belt or cure slipping. Belt dressing is a gooey, tar-like substance designed to cure V belt slipping by making the belt sticky. At best, it is a temporary fix, even on a V belt. But, when applied to a serpentine belt, the dressing will be spread into the pulley grooves. Once there, it will attract and hold dirt and grit which is a definite if you go offroading. The dirt will start the belt slipping again and all of the dirt and belt dressing will have to be cleaned out of the pulley grooves before a new belt is installed.
Belt noises can be diagnosed with a spray bottle of water. With the engine running and the sound audible, lightly mist the grooved side of the belt with water. If the noise disappears or lessens, but then shortly returns, the problem is probably a misaligned pulley. If the noise immediately increases after the belt is misted, the belt is slipping.
Another trick is reversing the belt: take it off and put it back on so that it travels in what would have been its backward direction as originally installed. If the noise goes away or gets much softer, the problem is a misaligned pulley. This diagnostic works because flipping the belt changes the direction of the misalignment from the belt’s perspective. If reversing the belt does not temporarily eliminate the noise, the problem is something other than misaligned pulleys.
Next, examine the belt itself. Glazing at the edges of a serpentine belt, or on its ridges or in the grooves, results from the belt slipping. It indicates that friction between the belt and the accessory drive pulley(s) created by slipping has overheated the belt.
Fraying at the edge of a belt indicates pulley misalignment. The edge frays because it is scraping on the top edge of an accessory drive pulley side as the belt feeds into it.
Fluid contamination attacks the rubber surface of the belt. All of the automotive fluids that can leak onto a belt—oil, power steering fluid, coolant—are petroleum based and will attack rubber. Once on the belt, any of these fluids will be distributed over the pulley groove surfaces, making them slippery and attracting dirt.
Last edited by Lyon; 07-25-2011 at 02:04 PM.
09-02-2011, 09:01 PM
#33
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Year: 2000
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0L
So I agree with the guy who said all Cherokee's squeal at startup with the a/c on - and this includes any of the defrost modes. There are 3 Cherokee's where I work and they ALL do it! I just shut off my heater controls when I park it, and wait a couple of minutes before I turn the a/c on. I have a new Gatorback belt and it's super tight. This unfortunately seems to be a normal Cherokee trait....
09-03-2011, 12:41 AM
#35
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Year: 2015, 2012
Model: Grand Cherokee (WK2)
Engine: 3.6L
So I agree with the guy who said all Cherokee's squeal at startup with the a/c on - and this includes any of the defrost modes. There are 3 Cherokee's where I work and they ALL do it! I just shut off my heater controls when I park it, and wait a couple of minutes before I turn the a/c on. I have a new Gatorback belt and it's super tight. This unfortunately seems to be a normal Cherokee trait....
09-03-2011, 02:19 PM
#36
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Year: 1988 & 1990
Model: Cherokee
Engine: Inline 6
Neither of my 2 Cherokees make a sound from the belt. I have a new belt on the '88 and a 3 year old belt on the '90 and not even the tiniest peep at any time. If you're getting noise from the belt, tighten it a bit at a time and test until the noise stops.
09-03-2011, 02:38 PM
#37
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Year: 1997
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0L
Originally Posted by Hucker21
So heres my problem. My water pump went out so i replaced it and then a day later my belts started squealing horribly. So i have replaced the idler pulley, the belt, got my water pump pulley resurfaced, replaced the clutch fan belt pulley, my harmonic balancer has been replaced recently, and i get an AC Compressor delete pulley but my belt is still squealing. My alternator charges fine, spins fine, and has no play so i dont think thats making the noise. When i try to hear where the noise is coming from it seems to be coming from my new water pump but its hard to tell. Also when i replace the belt or a pulley the noise goes away for a couple days or so. So has anyone ever had a problem with a brand new water pump squealing or any ideas of what else it could be? 
09-03-2011, 04:52 PM
#38
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Year: 1989 Laredo
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0 L 6 Renix
Squeel like a pig
The Peep squeeled for a long time, lots of belt changes and tension adjustments, I know the thread started out saying the Damper was recently changed. The Peep damper went bad and was separating, outer ring had moved about 0.100 to 1/8 backward, contacted the timing chain cover, I looked forever and played with that sucker lots before finding the problem, replaced the damper, no squeel. On the 89renix here is the wrench setup I use to adjust the tension, I use the 12mm socket over the short extension to hold the socket on the adjust bolt, a swivel head rachet for a little tip to clear the Powsteering pump, and it's an much more comfortable swing. If you can't find your squeel climb under and inspect your harmonic dampner.
09-03-2011, 08:38 PM
#39
So I agree with the guy who said all Cherokee's squeal at startup with the a/c on - and this includes any of the defrost modes. There are 3 Cherokee's where I work and they ALL do it! I just shut off my heater controls when I park it, and wait a couple of minutes before I turn the a/c on. I have a new Gatorback belt and it's super tight. This unfortunately seems to be a normal Cherokee trait....
Well, we're gonna sit you in a corner with that guy then until you snap out of it. Only the cherokees that have a problem do this. Do you think they released these from the factory this way? If this was a brand new Jeep would you accept that the belt squeek is "normal?" I think not.
We had a guy at work who was a mechanic and every time a piece of equipment came in with a problem and he didn't know how to fix it, he'd just say "oh, they all do that" or "it's been like that for years" What that is right there is an excuse. A real mechanic will FIX the problem.
You could have a wonderful Gatorback belt and the tension could be right on. But if you read my post above you'll see and learn there is more than just tension that will make a belt squeel.
09-03-2011, 08:44 PM
#40
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Year: 1991
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0L HO
Well, we're gonna sit you in a corner with that guy then until you snap out of it. Only the cherokees that have a problem do this. Do you think they released these from the factory this way? If this was a brand new Jeep would you accept that the belt squeek is "normal?" I think not.
We had a guy at work who was a mechanic and every time a piece of equipment came in with a problem and he didn't know how to fix it, he'd just say "oh, they all do that" or "it's been like that for years" What that is right there is an excuse. A real mechanic will FIX the problem.
You could have a wonderful Gatorback belt and the tension could be right on. But if you read my post above you'll see and learn there is more than just tension that will make a belt squeel.
We had a guy at work who was a mechanic and every time a piece of equipment came in with a problem and he didn't know how to fix it, he'd just say "oh, they all do that" or "it's been like that for years" What that is right there is an excuse. A real mechanic will FIX the problem.
You could have a wonderful Gatorback belt and the tension could be right on. But if you read my post above you'll see and learn there is more than just tension that will make a belt squeel.
09-03-2011, 09:22 PM
#41
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Year: 1998
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0
@ Rudy and Lion: Great posts!
@ Peep: I like the tip of the wrench over the extension.
@ LoveTheCherokees: Too tight = premature bearing failure.
@ Peep: I like the tip of the wrench over the extension.
@ LoveTheCherokees: Too tight = premature bearing failure.
09-04-2011, 05:39 AM
#42
09-05-2011, 02:12 AM
#43
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Year: 2000
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0L
I'll acknowledge it is not right, but very common. The belt on mine is crazy tight, definitely NOT the issue in my case. One of the other guys I work with actually way overtightened his (its got the "wind through the trees" sound) and it still does it too. I'd be happy to listen to rational reasons for this, but telling me its loose is a lame excuse. Honestly it doesn't bother me - I unplug the a/c compressor in the winter, and just wait for it to idle a couple minutes in the summer before I turn the a/c on. I assumed the compressor is getting tired, but if anyone has an easy fix, I'm all ears. On a 10+ year old vehicle I simply learn to accept things that aren't perfect after a while.
09-05-2011, 02:33 AM
#45
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Year: 2000
Model: Cherokee
Engine: 4.0L
Well, we're gonna sit you in a corner with that guy then until you snap out of it. Only the cherokees that have a problem do this. Do you think they released these from the factory this way? If this was a brand new Jeep would you accept that the belt squeek is "normal?" I think not.
We had a guy at work who was a mechanic and every time a piece of equipment came in with a problem and he didn't know how to fix it, he'd just say "oh, they all do that" or "it's been like that for years" What that is right there is an excuse. A real mechanic will FIX the problem.
You could have a wonderful Gatorback belt and the tension could be right on. But if you read my post above you'll see and learn there is more than just tension that will make a belt squeel.
We had a guy at work who was a mechanic and every time a piece of equipment came in with a problem and he didn't know how to fix it, he'd just say "oh, they all do that" or "it's been like that for years" What that is right there is an excuse. A real mechanic will FIX the problem.
You could have a wonderful Gatorback belt and the tension could be right on. But if you read my post above you'll see and learn there is more than just tension that will make a belt squeel.
