Saturday 22 August 2015

Squeaky fan belt......

This is one of the top three issues with these otherwise brilliant engines. I also run an S700 (94) and I have just had a new belt 2 months ago, but instead of squealing I get rattling - which is always the tensioner. Luckily for you, the squeal is usually easy to fix - mine's another trip to the garage! Although it seems illogical to spray lubricant onto a belt mechanism that relies on friction for it's operation, that is basically what you must do.
There is some dispute over the best stuff to use, but the top contenders are - and I have tried them all over the last 15 years - WD-40, cheap hairspray, silicone lubricant spray, furniture polish spray, and anything else you may have handy. I am also pretty sure that there is a specific product for squeaky belts, but I have yet to come across it - maybe others will comment.
What I have found is that no matter what I have tried, I have never experienced any detrimental effects - no slippage or other damage.
It is an incredibly annoying situation - it drives you crazy, and as a result I have applied liberal amounts of these sprays in increasing quantities over the years. Eventually it settles down, and most of my 15 years have been squeak free. 
You need to get under the front of the van, and carefully direct the spray on the inside of the belt - it's no use spraying the outside. You need a good 10 second long spray, so it is fully distributed. Try WD-40 or hairspray to begin with. The effect is usually immediate! The big question is how long will it last! Sometimes it lasts for months, sometimes just a few hours.
If you are uneasy about doing it yourself, then just pull into any handy garage and ask them to do it and what they advise - it's a universal problem and most mechanics will have their own trick.
There is a possibility that something might be out of alignment, so ultimately you may have to have the thing professionally checked again, but there is also a very good chance that a good spray will clear up the problem.
In my efforts to silence my rattling tensioner, I have sprayed at least half a can of spray grease - yes grease! - into the general area of the tensioner spring and pulley, and lots of it has dripped onto the belt, but to no ill effect - which just goes to show how resilient the belt system is to the application of lubricants. I am sure others will come in with their own solutions, and perhaps also criticise my advice, but I stress that I have never had a problem no matter what I have applied. I am sure that the belt is designed to withstand oil and diesel spillage and leaks and still function.


Hint - just type "belt dressing spray" in to Ebay and also "squeaky fan belt" into Youtube! Lots of hits!

1 comment:

  1. We have a Hymer S700 which we love but since having a new aerial installed we have a lot of squeaks coming from the dashboard / front / window surround. Any ideas on how to try and fix he problem other than removing the panels again that were removed when installing the arial. Is there something you can spray into the recesses, someone has suggested upholstery foam but we are not convinced.

    ReplyDelete