Need help on installing power steering belt
Hi all,
I have a 1989 Toyota Van LE 2.2 L and recently the power steering belt snapped (scared me to death on the freeway). Does anyone have any technical advice or photos of the installation/how the belt should normally look? I have the original manual, but it does not show any useful diagrams on installing the belt. Any help is appreciated! Love the site, thanks for everything.
Re: Need help on installing power steering belt
Cedar - While replacing the belt will certainly correct that aspect of the failure, you need to determine why the belt failed.
99% of the time it will be a seized idler pulley (the pulley that moves to adjust tension on the Pwr Str belt)
As a side note, you will need to drop the belts that are in front first, alternator for sure, not sure about A/C (if so equipped), been awhile since I was in there.
Re: Need help on installing power steering belt
Thanks Burntboot. I looked at that thread earlier, for some reason the videos/pictures were not loading. I will try looking again. Also, thank you for the advice on the idler pulley. How do I know if that seized/if it did seize how do I fix it? Thanks a ton!
Re: Need help on installing power steering belt
Does anyone know if it's okay to drive without the belt? It is obviously harder to turn but from what I could tell the belt was not attached to anything else except for the power steering.
Re: Need help on installing power steering belt
Quote:
Originally Posted by
cedarsvan
Does anyone know if it's okay to drive without the belt? It is obviously harder to turn but from what I could tell the belt was not attached to anything else except for the power steering.
Perfectly OK as long as you're physically able to drive without P/S. On your '89, that should not require much extra muscle. On the '84-'85 vans, it's definitely tougher (recirculating ball instead of rack and pinion).
Gwen
Re: Need help on installing power steering belt
there was a little debate about extra stress on the bevel gear(part of the linkage toward the front, makes a 90° coupling), but my 87 4x4 came with all the power steering components removed and i dont miss it...it really cleans up the engine compartment as well, making it way easier to access the alternator and thermostat among other things...it helps to have the van moving and your tires properly inflated...
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
Here's a quote from the "Basic van knowledge" thread:
Quote:
Originally Posted by
timsrv
The good thing about the serpentine belt is it's obvious what pulleys it rides on (only one serpentine belt). The bad thing is it's the farthest one back. This means the other 2 belts must be removed before you can change it. Since you'll be pulling all the belts you should replace them all. 1st pull the power steering, then the AC (if still equipped), then the Serpentine (if there's anything left of it). The PS & the Alt belt will need to be worked around the fan (coming off and going back on). This can be fun with the fan shroud in the way, but is manageable. Just work it over the fan one blade at a time until it's free. When all the belts are back on tighten them a bit tighter than normal as new belts stretch. If you don't know how tight to make them it's better to stay on the loose side. If they squeal, they're too loose :dizzy:. There's actually a tensioning tool (perhaps available for rent at Autozone or equivalent). There is such a thing as too tight, and you don't want to go there. The alternator belt is easy because there's a wing nut that is tightened by hand. When doing that one, just crank the wing nut as tight as you can (without tools), then tighten the set bolts (upper and lower alternator mount bolts).
For removing the AC & PS belts you will need to loosen the idler pulleys. To do that you'll need to loosen the the set bolts in the front/center of the pulley (14 mm) then use the long threaded 12 mm bolt to loosen/tighten. After the new belts are on & tight, snug up the center "set" bolts. Have fun. Tim
PS: You might try searching the forum for more information. Here's a thread on the subject:
https://www.toyotavantech.com/forum/...ernator)-belts
To view the post in it's original location, click on the little blue arrow next to my name (beginning of the quote). Tim
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
Hey guys! I'm having a little squeal from one of the belts in my van. It only happens in high humidity and / or when the van starts from cold, but yesterday for some reason it was more persistent than usual, squealing quite a bit whenever I idled or accelerated in first. As soon as the van shifted up out of first the squeal stopped. My a/c wasn't on (it never is because I have yet to fix the fan.) I'm guessing this is the serpentine belt? Power steering I wouldn't see the correlation with shifting and I'd notice it more while cornering right? Is it okay to apply belt dressing to the serpentine belt or is it a bad idea? My understanding is belt dressing is super bad for EPDM belts but helps quite a bit with neoprene. I guess if the belts are original, or at the very least old they'd be neoprene, but how can I tell if they've maybe been replaced by EPDM belts? Thanks!
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
A belt squeal that's associated with electrical loads (like headlights on and fan running on high) is most likely an alternator belt (serpentine). One that's associated with cranking your steering is typically going to be the PS pump belt (V-belt), and one that's associated with turning on your AC is typically going to be the AC belt (V-belt). I'm not aware of how the belt market is changing and/or materials they are made of, but I don't think belt dressing would hurt (I personally don't use belt dressing). When I'm investigating belt noise, assuming they're all tight, I use silicone spray on one belt at a time. The silicone will temporarily quiet it down a noisy belt and make it obvious which belt is the problem. And as always, when messing around near moving parts, do so at your own risk and be very careful. Tim
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
Quote:
Originally Posted by
timsrv
A belt squeal that's associated with electrical loads (like headlights on and fan running on high) is most likely an alternator belt (serpentine). One that's associated with cranking your steering is typically going to be the PS pump belt (V-belt), and one that's associated with turning on your AC is typically going to be the AC belt (V-belt). I'm not aware of how the belt market is changing and/or materials they are made of, but I don't think belt dressing would hurt (I personally don't use belt dressing). When I'm investigating belt noise, assuming they're all tight, I use silicone spray on one belt at a time. The silicone will temporarily quiet it down a noisy belt and make it obvious which belt is the problem. And as always, when messing around near moving parts, do so at your own risk and be very careful. Tim
Hey Tim! I got in there and snugged up all the belts, but I'm still getting squeal. Noticing a pretty clear correlation between the squeal and electrical loads (headlights particularly.) At a glance the serpentine belt appears to be pretty fresh so my guess is I've got a bad idler pulley bearing? Am I right to assume based on what I've read so far in this thread that I could remove the serpentine belt and spin the idler pulleys with my hand to see if the bearings are okay? Access to those pulleys from the top seems nearly impossible so I'm guessing I'd want to jack the van up. I know to replace the belt itself I'd have to remove the other two belts, but if I only need to replace a pulley bearing could this be done without removing the P/S and A/C belts, just leaving the serpentine belt hanging slack off the other pulleys? Sorry if I'm asking stupid questions, I'm a bicycle mechanic and this is my first ever foray into auto mechanics. Thanks!
Wrench
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
The serpentine belt does not have an idler pulley, only the AC and PS belts have those. To get decent access you'd need to pull the passenger seat and the access hatch under that. You wouldn't need to pull the belts to check the bearings in the idlers, just loosen them up enough to spin the pulley and feel the bearings.
Before doing that I'd use silicone spray on the belts (as previously mentioned) as that may help you identify. Tim
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
Quote:
Originally Posted by
timsrv
The serpentine belt does not have an idler pulley, only the AC and PS belts have those. To get decent access you'd need to pull the passenger seat and the access hatch under that. You wouldn't need to pull the belts to check the bearings in the idlers, just loosen them up enough to spin the pulley and feel the bearings.
Before doing that I'd use silicone spray on the belts (as previously mentioned) as that may help you identify. Tim
Pardon my automotive ignorance, what are the pulleys the serpentine belt runs on called? How many contact points are there? One for alternator, one for fan and one for water pump? I'll try silicon spray to confirm it's the serpentine belt.
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
The serpentine belt runs the water pump and the alternator pulleys. Adjusting the alternator tightens/loosens this belt. The PS pump and the AC compressor are not adjustable so they use adjustable idler pulleys to keep them tight. Pulleys that are only used for routing and/or adjusting belts are called idler pulleys. Tim
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
Quote:
Originally Posted by
timsrv
The serpentine belt runs the water pump and the alternator pulleys. Adjusting the alternator tightens/loosens this belt. The PS pump and the AC compressor are not adjustable so they use adjustable idler pulleys to keep them tight. Pulleys that are only used for routing and/or adjusting belts are called idler pulleys. Tim
Makes sense! Thank you.
Re: A/C, power steering, and fan (water pump/alternator) belts
just replaced all my belts. a few notes for DIYers:
- 12mm and 14mm wrenches and sockets / ratchet
- completed job with just driver's side seat up
- removed plastic guard beneath van for easier access to some belts (two 12mm bolts)
- PS belt came off easy from up top : AC and ALT belts easier from below
- no need to feed AC belt through fan
- i sprayed a little silicone lube on all bolts i'd be loosening and pulley spindles
- AC belt spec'd at auto supply store was too short : went back got next size longer and it worked perfect
- as noted new belts should be installed the very slightest bit tighter than usual 1/2" deflection
- good time to clean pulleys where belts will be seated
- i used a medium extension + short extension to reach the AC tension adjustment bolt from up top
- total time about 1 – 1-1/2 hours