You guys are the best! Just contacted these guys for a serpentine belt checker, seven years later, just email them on 6/30/24, and they return my email the next day saying they’re putting one in the mail! I would love to take my rig to them to have them change my belt wherever they are. Thank you so much you guys are the best!
I just replaced a 10 year / 150000 mile old belt on a Honda Civic. The old, original, belt had no cracks. It was starting to get the occasional squeak and it was stretched a bit based on the tensioner position. Just looking at it I would not have expected it to have any problems based only on the presence or absence of cracking.
This conversation was so informative. I've just replaced a belt on my Toyota Camry. The old belt did not have any cracks so I wondered if I'd wasted my money. It did show signs of wear so it seems I got it right. From Australia, thanks for the advice.
The checker seems like a GREAT idea and yet they're difficult to find. This video completely sold me on getting one and now I'm having trouble finding one - TAKE MY MONEY! 🙂
I followed the instructions in the video description: sent an email to CRP Industries and asked that they send me a belt wear tester. They did - for free! The tester works quite nicely.
Its also a good idea when you email CRP to mention where you saw the tool so that they can keep track of the reach of their marketing. And as a bonus it makes Charles look good in their eyes as its his viewers going to their site for the request
Thank you Charles and Dave for that short fully packed information video segment. I am going to replace my serpentine belt today and I am going with Continental product line The info was great and to the point, checking your belts with the tool is neat after you take the belt out I would agree that the pulleys and belt tensioners should be replaced when you replace the serpentine belt, but I don't agree that it takes a few more mins. You need time, tools, legal space, plus the know how and desire to take that additional steps. Great maybe not all cars have a heavy duty packed engine with now space but most are. Plus the cost sometimes makes it expensive buying them, sometimes you need two, then of course where you buy them kicks in, from the dealer directly, or after market which leads to which after market part is best, blah, blah, blah. I think that the video is VERY helpful as it shines the light on subject, and I LOVED Dave's comment about how the smooth free spinning pulley/tensioner might not be great as the oil/grease is running out, that was spot on!! Thanks again guys!!
I just had to swap out a belt and tensioner because of premature belt wear. The belt was really messed up after only about a year, you can see it on my channel. Gates and maybe CRP sell the tensioner, belts and pulleys as complete kits these days to make it easy.
Great cntent. I've heard some car manufacturers are using EPDM for dashes too. They've been using EPDM rubber on roofs for decades. Makes sense it would work great for cars as well.
most Serpentine belts today are made of EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer) and these types of belts don't typically crack when they are worn out like older belts of about 10 years ago. The grooves will widen as shown in this video. The life expectancy on these types of belts are typically about 70-80k miles. Foreign or Domestic doesn't matter.
Just curious, does the "Belt Dressing" spray in a can damage materials in belts? Yea, it does stop squeaking noise , but can extended use damage anything?
What about the replacement serpentine belt for an old VW? I have a Mk4 golf (1999)-- will the serpentine belts on the market today have this newer rubber chemistry?
i usually just recommend a belt at 70-80k if there is no history of being replaced. after a while you can just eyeball a worn EPDM belt and know its worn.
+HumbleMechanic + Charles, We don't have CRP here in Australia but i contacted Dayco (major belt supplier here) and asked about there AWearness guage and they're going to post out 2 to me. I'm just a guy who works on cars in his backyard for fun. Keep up the great work.👍
Very interesting vid and thanks for making it! I learned a lot!! None of the books in school discuss this. Glad this sort of supplementary material exists. BTW Gates will give you a belt check tool on request. Their website has the specifics.
Hey Charles, I'm wondering what the VW manual transmission service intervals are I can't find it in the owners manual which is weird. And what type of engine heaters the easier to install on these newer VWs? In -30C my 16 GTI's barely starting and its super hard on the engine. With the plastic oil pan I cant put an oil pan heater on it like I want to.
+MechRider89 no replacement for the fluid. Not sure on the block heater. I haven't seen anything for the mk7 stuff yet. I'll see if I can find something
that worries me, but at the same time at lest not changing it at a certain interval wont void warranty. I'll have to see what guys are running in their manual trans and go from there I guess. I'm just used to changing my tran fluid at lest once every 2 years on vehicles I drive spiritedly. Thanks for taking the time to reply Charles, much appreciated.
i have never had a problem with a belt braking. what i have had problems with is worn pulleys. you have a belt start slipping.. change it and all is og for a bit.. then it starts again. 4-8 mont MAX on a belt. that is the pulley.. or on mersadees i have had the idler pulley arm go bad and it start to squeal like mad. that is the rubber in the arm going bad. it "looks OK" and it just makes a really bad noise you can't really locate. and that arm is over 500$ here :(
I recently heard some Belts are made of EDDM, which is why I'm here, anybody know which properties for each material? . I don't care about noise , it's a diesel so there's no chance of hearing the belt
+Zac Macpherson :) I have to get the Wookie finished before starting the next project. But if I find a good deal on one I don't mind buying it and holding it. :)
HumbleMechanic sounds great being a aircooled guy myself I would really like to see what a modern tech does when you run into similar situations that I deal with in my little garage great videos by the way Keep it up:)
Dayco and Continental send the tool out for free.Everytime I do an alternator,power steering pump or water pump change,the belt gets inspected since it is off most of the time.It gets replaced at the same time if I see it is bad
why wait until it has cracks or snaps to replace it? better to just replace it every 60k miles or even 50k . need to factor in time too. everything rots as time passes
On my -97 C Mercedes with m104 engine, all pulleys, tensioners, AC, everything is original. The belt was original and in bad shape (worn, little bit of cracking) so I changed it couple years ago. Newer cars might be made worse than this, but saying that you need to change tensioner/pulleys every time you change the belt is nonsense.
+Mortalomena i thought that too. But I've had several conversations with belt and pulley companies. They make a great case for replacement. Just like replacing timing belt components at the same time.
All of my cars have lasted well above 200,000 miles, and never had a pulley or tensioner replaced. Plastic pulleys? Really? Whats wrong with car companies using plastic where it doesn't belong. Great channel by the way!
I had a customer tip me $20 to find him a non-OE pulley after the bearing failed a 2nd time. Couldn't match OD, but bolt hole and ID were the same. Worked apparently. He left with torque specs for the bolt (my assumption why it failed), a new belt, and a tensioner. A $47 pulley! OE was $17. Never use a rental torque wrench BTW ;)
I would say,call the customer up before you change that belt( in reference to the discussion in the video). I could see belt and labor (and or course tensioner) hitting 150.00 easily. Having an unexpected 150.00 on the bill will not make you popular. About the tool. Almost have to take the belt off to properly use the tool,if that belt is coming off to be checked,heck might as well change it. Can't say I have seen one shredded serpentine belt,in quite a few years. Most of the serpentine belts that I changed (and this was under warranty for GM) were changed because the customer thought they were noisy. GM did not have a problem with belt changes due to noise,including the tensioner. A visual inspection can reveal debris in those groves. I will admit that it is first time I have seen that tool.
@@HumbleMechanic That's true. Another factor is that shops don't have the same flexibility as a DIY mechanic due to contractual and liability concerns. So while a DIY mechanic can put on stretch fit belt the shop may chose to replace the tensioner and go with a regular belt per original design. So the DIY repair will be much cheaper than the shop. Stretch fit belt is also more efficient and reliable due to less parts.
While you're changing the belt it doesn't take much longer to change idlers and tensioners? BullSheet. It takes multiple times longer, literally a belt takes about 2 minutes on most vehicles, less time than even looking up the part numbers for the idlers and tensioners and pulling them out of their boxes. Hey, do the whole thing if you are the type that wants to spend money ahead of time to put off breakdowns later, but a lot of this video stunk like marketing more than truth. I suppose there is a little more validity to it if you are paying top dollar to have a mechanic /shop do everything for you instead of DIY.
You guys are the best! Just contacted these guys for a serpentine belt checker, seven years later, just email them on 6/30/24, and they return my email the next day saying they’re putting one in the mail! I would love to take my rig to them to have them change my belt wherever they are. Thank you so much you guys are the best!
Oh that’s awesome!!!!
I just replaced a 10 year / 150000 mile old belt on a Honda Civic. The old, original, belt had no cracks. It was starting to get the occasional squeak and it was stretched a bit based on the tensioner position. Just looking at it I would not have expected it to have any problems based only on the presence or absence of cracking.
This conversation was so informative.
I've just replaced a belt on my Toyota Camry. The old belt did not have any cracks so I wondered if I'd wasted my money.
It did show signs of wear so it seems I got it right.
From Australia, thanks for the advice.
The checker seems like a GREAT idea and yet they're difficult to find. This video completely sold me on getting one and now I'm having trouble finding one - TAKE MY MONEY! 🙂
Same here! I can't find one of those belt wear tester gizmos anywhere.
Same here! UGH :/
I followed the instructions in the video description: sent an email to CRP Industries and asked that they send me a belt wear tester. They did - for free! The tester works quite nicely.
Its also a good idea when you email CRP to mention where you saw the tool so that they can keep track of the reach of their marketing. And as a bonus it makes Charles look good in their eyes as its his viewers going to their site for the request
+DK1102 damn that's an awesome idea. Hahah wish I would have thought of that
Thank you Charles and Dave for that short fully packed information video segment.
I am going to replace my serpentine belt today and I am going with Continental product line
The info was great and to the point, checking your belts with the tool is neat after you take the belt out
I would agree that the pulleys and belt tensioners should be replaced when you replace the serpentine belt, but I don't agree that it takes a few more mins. You need time, tools, legal space, plus the know how and desire to take that additional steps. Great maybe not all cars have a heavy duty packed engine with now space but most are. Plus the cost sometimes makes it expensive buying them, sometimes you need two, then of course where you buy them kicks in, from the dealer directly, or after market which leads to which after market part is best, blah, blah, blah. I think that the video is VERY helpful as it shines the light on subject, and I LOVED Dave's comment about how the smooth free spinning pulley/tensioner might not be great as the oil/grease is running out, that was spot on!!
Thanks again guys!!
Charles
thank you a great simple tool to have. big difference between a $60.00 belt or a $300.00 tow and a motel room for the evening.
+Brad Downs ain't that the truth!
anyone know what these serpentine belt testers are called on ebay? i don't live in the USA so i can't get one sent to me
I just had to swap out a belt and tensioner because of premature belt wear. The belt was really messed up after only about a year, you can see it on my channel. Gates and maybe CRP sell the tensioner, belts and pulleys as complete kits these days to make it easy.
Great cntent. I've heard some car manufacturers are using EPDM for dashes too. They've been using EPDM rubber on roofs for decades. Makes sense it would work great for cars as well.
most Serpentine belts today are made of EPDM (ethylene propylene diene monomer) and these types of belts don't typically crack when they are worn out like older belts of about 10 years ago. The grooves will widen as shown in this video. The life expectancy on these types of belts are typically about 70-80k miles. Foreign or Domestic doesn't matter.
What are the tells of a serpentine belt that is going bad?
Besides the vehicle leaving you stranded of course
Hi mate. Thank you for this info. Do you know where to buy the tool to check the belt? Thanks in advance
Love your channel since I have a vw Jetta mk6, and all the knowledge you share is very helpful
+423million right on!!! Thank you.
First video to properly explain this to me. Thanks!
AWESOME!
nice for us old school guys to learn the new materials and technology
Does any body know what happen to the tool that has been show?
Where did you buy that belt gauge? The belt gauge spot on their website doesn't have a place to purchase it, and I can't find it anywhere else.
Just curious, does the "Belt Dressing" spray in a can damage materials in belts? Yea, it does stop squeaking noise , but can extended use damage anything?
I installed a new belt at same size but one less tooth. So it's a bit less wider . Is that ok ?
What about the replacement serpentine belt for an old VW? I have a Mk4 golf (1999)-- will the serpentine belts on the market today have this newer rubber chemistry?
The original ones were prone to crack. But I have not replaced one in forever. LOL
i usually just recommend a belt at 70-80k if there is no history of being replaced. after a while you can just eyeball a worn EPDM belt and know its worn.
+HumbleMechanic + Charles,
We don't have CRP here in Australia but i contacted Dayco (major belt supplier here) and asked about there AWearness guage and they're going to post out 2 to me. I'm just a guy who works on cars in his backyard for fun.
Keep up the great work.👍
+Darryl John Bosch awesome!!!! Glad you got one coming.
Thanks for the tip, I emailed them and received two in the mail for nix.
Does 2000 Maxima have one serpentine belt?
i have mazda3 2006 with 2.3 engine not turbo model s which serpdntine belt number fits?
Very interesting vid and thanks for making it! I learned a lot!! None of the books in school discuss this. Glad this sort of supplementary material exists. BTW Gates will give you a belt check tool on request. Their website has the specifics.
May I have the link to buy that tool please ?
Hey Charles, I'm wondering what the VW manual transmission service intervals are I can't find it in the owners manual which is weird.
And what type of engine heaters the easier to install on these newer VWs? In -30C my 16 GTI's barely starting and its super hard on the engine. With the plastic oil pan I cant put an oil pan heater on it like I want to.
+MechRider89 no replacement for the fluid.
Not sure on the block heater. I haven't seen anything for the mk7 stuff yet. I'll see if I can find something
Serious? your not supposed to change transmission fluid?
That is common on all VW manual transmissions. Heck we didn't have auto trans services for a long long time.
that worries me, but at the same time at lest not changing it at a certain interval wont void warranty. I'll have to see what guys are running in their manual trans and go from there I guess. I'm just used to changing my tran fluid at lest once every 2 years on vehicles I drive spiritedly.
Thanks for taking the time to reply Charles, much appreciated.
Charles what about this link to this tool
Michal Domanski i wana know too
+Michal Domanski I wasn't able to have a direct link. I put an email address down in the description they will hook you up with one.
+Michal Domanski sorry about that.
Get a tool by emailing info@crpindustries.com and request a Contitester.
do that, its from the description
Looking for the link to the free plastic tool… too late?
i have never had a problem with a belt braking. what i have had problems with is worn pulleys. you have a belt start slipping.. change it and all is og for a bit.. then it starts again. 4-8 mont MAX on a belt. that is the pulley.. or on mersadees i have had the idler pulley arm go bad and it start to squeal like mad. that is the rubber in the arm going bad. it "looks OK" and it just makes a really bad noise you can't really locate. and that arm is over 500$ here :(
I was just wondering how to check my belt... Thank you, Charles. :-)
I recently heard some Belts are made of EDDM, which is why I'm here, anybody know which properties for each material? . I don't care about noise , it's a diesel so there's no chance of hearing the belt
Hey Charles, any VW coolant flush in the near future?
+Soumaine “Ssd” probably. I think my Passat is gonna need one soon.
HumbleMechanic A long time subscriber, I'll keep an eye on it. Thank you
+Soumaine awesome. Thank you. :)
Do they ship overseas? Would be neat to have one of those.
I've asked them two days ago- no answer yet. I'll let you know if I ever hear from them.
Thanks, please do.
if you refeer to Europe. then they dont at least last time i asked half year ago
Well - they never answered my e-mails, but today (29. Dec. 16) I found a letter in the mailbox with a test tool in it. I am pleasantly surprised.
+Peter Riis sorry about the email thing. But glad they got you one.
So when are you going to do that square back
+Zac Macpherson :) I have to get the Wookie finished before starting the next project. But if I find a good deal on one I don't mind buying it and holding it. :)
HumbleMechanic sounds great being a aircooled guy myself I would really like to see what a modern tech does when you run into similar situations that I deal with in my little garage great videos by the way Keep it up:)
+Zac Macpherson hahaha I'd be bald from all the head scratching
Dayco and Continental send the tool out for free.Everytime I do an alternator,power steering pump or water pump change,the belt gets inspected since it is off most of the time.It gets replaced at the same time if I see it is bad
191000 on my 02 accord with orginal belts. Well the timing belt has been changed.
Well you answered my question.I have Honda accord 2001 with 130000 miles.No problem so far
why wait until it has cracks or snaps to replace it? better to just replace it every 60k miles or even 50k . need to factor in time too. everything rots as time passes
Will this tool work on all serp belts? just wondering because I work on domestics and Charles works on VW (Exotic? Import?)
+Chadd Taylor for the most part yes. I'm sure there are some that are odd all. But it's a universal tool.
I wish I could get this tool in australia.
need one of those tools. cool vid.
+Texas_Reyes hit up that email in the description. They will hook ya up
nah, you just avoid squeaking and squealing. it breaks when you get cracks in it
On my -97 C Mercedes with m104 engine, all pulleys, tensioners, AC, everything is original. The belt was original and in bad shape (worn, little bit of cracking) so I changed it couple years ago.
Newer cars might be made worse than this, but saying that you need to change tensioner/pulleys every time you change the belt is nonsense.
+Mortalomena i thought that too. But I've had several conversations with belt and pulley companies. They make a great case for replacement. Just like replacing timing belt components at the same time.
All of my cars have lasted well above 200,000 miles, and never had a pulley or tensioner replaced. Plastic pulleys? Really? Whats wrong with car companies using plastic where it doesn't belong. Great channel by the way!
my 89 just clicked over to 360000 and has only had 3 belts ever put on it nothing else and its quieter than my grandpas 2016 truck lol
I had a customer tip me $20 to find him a non-OE pulley after the bearing failed a 2nd time. Couldn't match OD, but bolt hole and ID were the same. Worked apparently. He left with torque specs for the bolt (my assumption why it failed), a new belt, and a tensioner. A $47 pulley! OE was $17. Never use a rental torque wrench BTW ;)
I would say,call the customer up before you change that belt( in reference to the discussion in the video). I could see belt and labor (and or course tensioner) hitting 150.00 easily. Having an unexpected 150.00 on the bill will not make you popular. About the tool. Almost have to take the belt off to properly use the tool,if that belt is coming off to be checked,heck might as well change it. Can't say I have seen one shredded serpentine belt,in quite a few years. Most of the serpentine belts that I changed (and this was under warranty for GM) were changed because the customer thought they were noisy. GM did not have a problem with belt changes due to noise,including the tensioner. A visual inspection can reveal debris in those groves. I will admit that it is first time I have seen that tool.
My 03 mustang 3.8 55,770 miles has orginal belt. Made in usa..
Replacing something that isn't broken is how they jack up their profits. Why not bypass the tensioner and replace with a stretch fit belt?
Some shops do. but most find true broken things as cars break LOL
@@HumbleMechanic That's true. Another factor is that shops don't have the same flexibility as a DIY mechanic due to contractual and liability concerns. So while a DIY mechanic can put on stretch fit belt the shop may chose to replace the tensioner and go with a regular belt per original design. So the DIY repair will be much cheaper than the shop. Stretch fit belt is also more efficient and reliable due to less parts.
Nice vid thanks
AWESOME!
I see more modern junk adding more work to a simple fix
Follow the maintenance schedule and mark in a notebook, you'll be fine. Parts usually last longer, but anything more is just asking for trouble.
Sure. Modern junk is always bad compared to years prior. Please tell me more of this logic.
yeah
+james edwards I put an email address down in the description they will hook you up with one.
+james edwards sorry about that.
While you're changing the belt it doesn't take much longer to change idlers and tensioners? BullSheet. It takes multiple times longer, literally a belt takes about 2 minutes on most vehicles, less time than even looking up the part numbers for the idlers and tensioners and pulling them out of their boxes.
Hey, do the whole thing if you are the type that wants to spend money ahead of time to put off breakdowns later, but a lot of this video stunk like marketing more than truth. I suppose there is a little more validity to it if you are paying top dollar to have a mechanic /shop do everything for you instead of DIY.
i have a honda with a 200k miles on its belt
+Xp_Youngunv4 xbox and pc nice!!!
HumbleMechanic its squealling so we are replacing it today
Finally changing my belt on my Celica 140k miles on it 😆
Great Fucking Information !