I feel like such an idiot...I can't understand why my '84 SE goes thru alternator belts the way it does! I've put less than 500 miles on the car since getting it back on the road, and I'm already "squealing" the third belt! The Pontiac dealer doesn't carry them, told me they get them from NAPA, so that's where I got this one. It appears to be high quality, a little wider than the others that have worn out quickly...I'm ready to just park the car in the front yard with a For Sale sign!!!
I've inspected the pulleys, everything's fine. Both alt and A/C belts track nice and straight while running. Doesn't seem to be any drag on the alternator if I spin it. But if I drive it about 50 miles to work, the belt will squeal when I start it to go home that nite...IT'S STRETCHED AGAIN!!! I carry a 13mm wrench and pry bar at all times so I can tighten the belt AGAIN!!! After a couple days of squealing-tightening cycles, I'm out of travel on the alternator adjuster, and it's time for another belt. I'm so frustrated now...I can put up with fixing the occasional broken part, after all the car's over 15 years old...but an alterator belt??? COME ON, NOW!!!
Please pardon my venting guys, I'm sure some of you can appreciate my frustration...this car is such a blast to drive, especially after I've worked so hard to get it back on the road! An ideas? (Maybe this has nothing to do with it, but the volt gauge reads 15 volts whenever the car's running, and the batteries new...maybe that has something to do with it, maybe not.) I'm willing to entertain any ideas or suggestions at this point.

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Butch
A kid trapped inside a 40-something year old body...

You just answered the question yourself!

That alt is overcharging....if your gauge is anywhere close to accurate....and it takes alot to keep an alt charging at that rate.

Try this with a fully charged 12.6v battery.
Tighten the alt belt.....unplug the connector from the alt so that it won't charge and drive it 50 miles in the daylight. Then check the belt tension. My bet is that it is still tight. Plug the alt back up and drive it home. The belt will be loose because the constant pressure of the alt overcharging is stretching the belt. If all this is true......you need an alternator.

Phil

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GTDude
OVER 25 years GM experience

that does sound logical.However my car has charged at almost 15 volts for over 4 years and 100,000 miles. belt is over 3 years old too, Ive only had to adjust it when I put on a new alternator. I only had to change batteries once last year, and that was not because of a problem, I replace them at 4 years anyway. maybe try some brake cleaner on all the pulleys, make sure they have no burrs, and again chk to see if they all align. Try another brand of belt (Gates).

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maybe bad alt or maybe bad grounds check the grounds with a VOM a bad conection/s can boust amps and over work the alt even if it is working fine on it's own
PLUS wires are cheaper to fix!!!!!!

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Question wonder and be wierd

Now this may be the extreme but when I got my '84 SE it had been sitting outside for 9 to 10 years without running, when I got it running I burned the belt off in about 30 minutes,(it was an original belt) I put on a new belt, it lasted an hour.

What I found was that as the Fiero sits and is rained on the rain goes through the hood vent onto the engine.

If you look at how the belt raps around the bottom of the crank pully you will see it forms a kind of bowl where the water can sit and rust the pully.

I checked my alt and crank pullies and found them both pitted and rough which caused the belt to heat up and fail/wear out.

I would inspect all pully groves for any sign of rust or pitting which may be the problem.

I tried to sand the pullies and smooth them out before replacing them and that only slowed the process down.

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Me & Mrs. Fierohoho

Thanks for the input guys! I brought the car to work today, so I'll unplug the alt for the trip home this afternoon and check out that theory. I'll get under it this weekend to inspect the pulleys more carefully. The car sat for at least 4 years before I got it, so a rusty pulley may be the culprit.
Again, please pardon the rant...these cars are such emotional roller coasters...they're a blast when they run well, and an absolute PITA when something's wrong!
Peace,
Butch

Check to make sure all the bolts for the alt. bracket are there. I was missing two when I bought my car and the alt. would never stay tight. I had to keep ajusting it to keep the belt tight. Sounds like you may have the same problem.

We'll assume the pulleys are ok and in alignment.... we'll further assume you really do have good belts.

The Alt belt on the 84-86 runs the waterpump and the alternator.

One of them is bad. What the alt and WP feel like unloaded isn't always accurate. If the alternator has an electrical problem, yes, it can overload the belt.

or

You are overtightening the belt when first put on. Doing that overloads the belt driven parts and can break the cording in the belt. Once the cording is even a little damaged the belt dies quickly.

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11-Sept-01, The day the world as we knew it ended.

Yep, theogre........didn't think about overtightening. That can DAMN sure do it!

Phil