my belt has been off and on squealing for a few weeks so i finally got around to replacing it yesterday. i figured itd be quick and easy, right? nothing ever goes quick or easy for me . first things first, i compare my two belts. i cant help but notice the new one looks bigger than the old one.



at first my thought is "great, the parts guy gave me the wrong one". but, then i notice it looks kind of uneven on the edges. so where could all of the missing belt have gone?

well, i found it. all wrapped around the gap between the water pump pulley and the fan clutch. <sarcasm>luckily there was an good 1/8" of space to work in there </sarcasm>. the best way i could describe it is it was like trying to untangle a backlash on your fishing reel, from two feet away, with a salad fork, in a dark room .

i used a variety of pliers, colorful language, lubrication of the belt pieces with my blood, and teeth grinding to finally get it all off. basically id grab little pieces with pliers and rotate the fan back and forth while pulling on it.



then, my problems really began, when i realized there's no sticker under the hood to show belt routing. i looked in the FSM, which had a really crappy diagram that was little to no help. all i have for internet right now is an air card, so i stood on the bed of my truck, on one leg, with my laptop in the air so i could get a signal and looked on trusty dtr, where i found a good 3D view of the belt routing and finally got it on.

belt change time estimated (by me) to be 15 minutes = 2 hours

i hope this one lasts 90k miles too

 

After all that work I hope it lasts longer, and it probably will if...............you got the new one installed in the correct direction. Did you note the direction of rotation on the old one and match the new one correctly. If you didn't, it's a 50/50 thing, you might have guessed correctly.






























j/k, the direction doesn't matter.

 

<rocking in the fetal position> LALALALALA I CANT HEAR YOU!!!

hahahah. you got me there for a minute. i guess you could hear me cursing?

 

Great response, now I'm cleaning my keyboard! I figured you needed a good laugh after that experience. BTW, nice pile-O-parts. The direction on that one shouldn't be an issue.