While the rest of you were futzing around in PA

[Erik S. Klein]

I decided to go for a spin today. After cruising slowly for a few blocks I got on a freeway onramp and accelerated as normal. At the top I realized that I had no power steering. . . My belts were once again not where they belonged.

I pulled over quickly, turned on the hazards, popped the hood and got out my AAA card and phone.

I saw the spaghetti that was my belts and realized that I wasn't going anywhere without an alternator, water pump, power steering and a fan. At least the AIR pump belt was intact. I'd hate to be without emissions, after all.

I called AAA for a flatbed and was told they would expedite it due to my "dangerous location" on the side of the freeway. (This is California, after all - I probably wasn't even really safe 50 feet from the car at the sound wall but it was shady there so that's where I stood.

By the time the "expedited" flatbed finally arrived 41 minutes later (I'd hate to think what the slow truck would take) four of "California's finest" had passed by this stranded motorist without even tapping the breaks - nothing on their minds but where to get the next donut.

In stark contrast, of the two Corvettes that passed one bolted from the left lane to stop and ask if I needed assistance. Chuck in your beautiful MY Z06, if you're reading this, thanks for the courtesy. It made my day. Your car looked great and sounded awesome.

This sucks, though. Two out of my last four outings in the Vette ended this way and one of those was a ride to the shop (without power steering!) to get the belts fixed the second time.

The car is back in my garage and I've got to decide if the same shop gets 3 cracks at changing out the belts or not. . . Anyone know of a mechanic they trust in the San Jose, CA area?

 

[bossvette]

If origionality is not an issue try a serpentine system, save your old stuff and enjoy the ride.

 

[JohnZ]

I'd check to make sure you have the correct pulleys, and that they are properly aligned and the belts are properly tensioned; I've never thrown a belt in over 40 years of Corvettes. Dayco "Top Cog" belts are the best that money can buy, and only cost a buck or two more than the garden-variety parts store belts.

 

[Erik S. Klein]

I'd check to make sure you have the correct pulleys, and that they are properly aligned and the belts are properly tensioned; I've never thrown a belt in over 40 years of Corvettes. Dayco "Top Cog" belts are the best that money can buy, and only cost a buck or two more than the garden-variety parts store belts.

The pulleys are mostly correct (there's an extra notch on the Alt pulley, but that's been there forever) and they had the same belts for over ten years of ownership and never tossed a one. I got them changed recently because it had been over ten years and the very next drive they tossed.

I suspect they came out of alignment during the changeover. The tension looked okay to me (I haven't done belts in forever, though.)

The car goes back in on Wednesday to get it fixed for good. . .

 

[L48]

I suspect they came out of alignment during the changeover. The tension looked okay to me (I haven't done belts in forever, though.)

I have to agree. It seems a spacer or washer was put back incorrectly. I suppose it is also possible something did not get tightened or something got bent.

 

[Jack]

I second the concern about correct pulleys & tension ... but ... if those are correct ... maybe this: It's not uncommon for a mechanic or owner to put the wrong WIDTH belt on ...sure you can adjust up the accessories until they look positioned right & tension is right ... but if the width is wrong the belt don't ride in the groove right ... and it'll sling it off. It's routine for parts stores to "substitute" a close but wrong width belt ... same goes for a owner or a shop with belts on wall. Another thing is this ... later /rebuilt alternators can have a variety of pulleys (widths). So, if alt is changed & its pulley ain't a match to crank pulley ... then mechanic puts on a new belt ... first thing he sees is that belt don't lay in alt pulley groove right (although it may lay in crank pulley AOK, but that ain't right in his face) ... so he swaps to a different width to go with alt pulley ... and now belt don't lay in crank groove worth a hoot ... and it slings. Something to consider.
JACK:gap

 

[Erik S. Klein]

I got the car back last night and it made it home okay. . . I'll get in there and check it out in detail this weekend.

The shop ended up replacing the PS pulley because the original was a little wobbly. That was probably the cause since both times the car threw belts it started with the PS and cascaded from there. I don't know how the pulley became wobbly since it went 30+ years without incident, but that's another story.

He did mention that he wasn't perfectly satisfied with the way the belts were setting in the crank pulley grooves but that he was sure he had the right belts (there are apparantly two sizes - the big size is way too big and the smaller size looked a little bit big.) I'll see if it has settled in when I dig in there.

BTW, on an unrelated side-note - can I really expect a HP gain from just replacing my air filter with a K&N? Someone mentioned that but I'm having a hard time believing that It'd be significant.

 

[JohnZ]

BTW, on an unrelated side-note - can I really expect a HP gain from just replacing my air filter with a K&N? Someone mentioned that but I'm having a hard time believing that It'd be significant.

No, it won't be significant - you probably won't notice it at all, but your engine will in the long term; the production pleated paper filter is FAR more effective than the K&N in keeping particles out of your engine - OEM testing has confirmed this for years and years. You can't bend the laws of physics - higher airflow means less effective filtration, regardless of the marketing hype.