What is a serpentine belt?

It’s a beautiful day, you’re out for a drive, and suddenly your steering is heavy, your A/C stops working, and your temperature gauge climbs through the roof!

All these things can happen if your serpentine belt breaks, which is why you need to know what it is, and what to look out for in case yours carks it. Let’s explore how this single belt helps drive your car, and what to do if it starts to fail.

What it is and where to find it

The serpentine belt is a single belt that runs the pulleys on your car’s accessories to keep them powered.

On older cars, each accessory under the hood had its own dedicated belt to keep it powered. Nowadays, cars rarely have more than two separate belts to run all those accessories—most often the ancillary components are all run by a single serpentine belt.

Normally located at the front of the engine, the serpentine belt (also known as the drive belt) is a long rubber belt with grooves on one side. It drives the alternator, the A/C compressor, the water pump, the alternator and the power steering pump, among other things, so your car can’t function without one.

As you can imagine, with so much riding on one belt, it’s important for it to be in good working order. If it fails while you’re out on the road, lots of things are going to stop working and you won’t get very far!

Let’s take a look at the signs and symptoms of a failing serpentine belt.

What are the signs of a failing serpentine belt?

Even if it hasn’t snapped, there are some obvious signs that your belt may have seen better days. Here’s a few things to look out for:

There’s a few things that can indicate a failing or snapped serpentine belt, some of which can be dangerous as well as detrimental to your car. That’s why it’s a good idea to check your serpentine belt for faults or swing into your local mycar before it becomes a bigger problem.

What to do if you have a failing serpentine belt

If you do notice your belt needs replacing, you can do it yourself if you’re mechanically minded and have the time.

It’ll take about 1 or 2 hours, but they’re relatively inexpensive and straightforward to repair. Just make sure you take a picture of the belt in place or draw a diagram before removing it, as it goes around a lot of pulleys one specific way and every engine setup will be different.

1. First, locate the tensioner pulley by pulling on the belt and seeing which pulley moves.

2. Get the appropriate ratchet or breaker bar and leverage the tensioner in the opposite direction to which it applies tension, which will take the tension out of the belt so that you can pull it off.

3. Once it’s off, it’s a good idea also to spin the pulleys one by one, ensuring that they aren’t sticking or making noise, as this indicates that they need to be changed also due to internal bearing wear.

4. Also check for separation between the tensioner arm and mounting plate to prevent potential major engine damage. (It is possible for the belt to be sucked in behind the harmonic balancer on some cars, causing major engine failure)

5. If the pulleys are good, thread the new belt on, making sure the belt sits properly in the grooves of the pulleys and follows the correct direction.

Alternatively, call your local mycar mechanic and we can help!

Can you drive with a broken serpentine belt?

It’s not a good idea to drive with a broken serpentine belt. It is dangerous, especially if it breaks while you are driving. It could cause an accident, or cost you time and money replacing parts that get damaged as a result.

At best, the noise is concerning, at worst it can cause loss of power to vital functions of your car and major engine failure.

If you suspect you have a damaged serpentine belt, get it to a mechanic as soon as possible for a quick and easy repair.

If you’d like us to take a look at your serpentine belt, give mycar a call and one of our friendly mechanics will book your car in for a service or inspection.