belt squeal

Maintenance advice to keep your Spider in shape.
georgeramos
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Your car is a: 1971 124 Spider 1608

belt squeal

Postby georgeramos » Fri May 26, 2017 9:41 am

My original alternator belt was squealing a bit and i tightened the tension and it quieted down but the alternator itself quit so i upgraded to a 95 amp and i cant get the belt to stop squealing. The one that i got with the new alt had it adjusted to the end of the slot but I bought a shorter belt that allows about 1/2 to 3/4 space left in the slot and i tightened the daylights out of it but the belt still squeals sometimes in a prolonged way for 5 to 10 seconds. This is particularly true on startup cold or hot. Might there be something else going on?

Thc

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chrisg
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Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2006 7:30 am
Your car is a: 1971 FIAT

Re: belt squeal

Postby chrisg » Fri May 26, 2017 11:48 am

I've had a few issues w/ a 95 amp alt. some was a bit of an alignment issue which I ultimately resolved. Some may be peripheral wiring related. The fact that it's on a car that is driven in bits (ie, maybe "daily" for 3-4 days at a stretch & then dormant for 3 weeks, etc.) makes it on a slow ride to diagnose as it tends to not be an issue when in regular use.
Chris Granju
Knoxville, TN
'71 FIAT 124BS (pretty), '72 FIAT 124BC,'76 FIAT 128 Wagon(ratbeast), '85 Bertone X 1/9, '70 124BC (project), 79 X1/9 (hot rod in rehab), '73 124BS (2L, mean), '74 124 Special TC, '73 124CS, '73 124 Familiare

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Nanonevol
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Your car is a: 1977 Fiat 124 Spider
Location: Medway, Massachusetts

Re: belt squeal

Postby Nanonevol » Fri May 26, 2017 3:44 pm

How tight is tight? What's the play in the middle of the belt? (Just went through this)
1977 Fiat Spider
1985 Jaguar XJ6
1967 Triumph Bonneville (hard-tail chopper)
1966 BSA Lightning

redcars
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Joined: Sat Jul 31, 2010 9:36 pm
Your car is a: 1981 Spider 2000
Location: Collinsville, IL

Re: belt squeal

Postby redcars » Fri May 26, 2017 10:37 pm

It may be that your pulley on the car is worn out.
1987 Lotus Super 7 clone
1981 Fiat Spider 2000 AT
1982 Fiat Spider 2000 5sd
1970 Fiat Coupe

georgeramos
Posts: 1359
Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2011 11:11 am
Your car is a: 1971 124 Spider 1608

Re: belt squeal

Postby georgeramos » Sat May 27, 2017 2:12 am

There is probably about 1/4 to 3/8 deflection. Its pretty tight. The pulleys look pretty parallel.

The squeal is much worse.upon startup ( cold or warm) and tends to go away.while driving and only come back periodically of driving for a while. It is getting very annoying.

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So Cal Mark
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Your car is a: Fiat
Location: upland, ca.

Re: belt squeal

Postby So Cal Mark » Sat May 27, 2017 2:26 am

the width of the belt has to match the pulley width or else you'll never get it to stop slipping
Mark Allison
allisonsautomotive.com Fiat and Alfa Romeo parts and service. Performance parts our specialty!
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starsmark@hotmail.com 909-981-3566

georgeramos
Posts: 1359
Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2011 11:11 am
Your car is a: 1971 124 Spider 1608

Re: belt squeal

Postby georgeramos » Sat May 27, 2017 9:18 am

This happens to be a cogged belt. Could that make things worse?

I will pull it and measure the pulley width. Then i will search online i guess for a proper belt. Anyone have experience with AR 95 amp alternator and which belt fit the pulley?

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chrisg
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Joined: Sun Jun 04, 2006 7:30 am
Your car is a: 1971 FIAT

Re: belt squeal

Postby chrisg » Sat May 27, 2017 12:25 pm

which side of the engine are you using it on? (mine is on my '71 and on the right side per original location for a BS1)
Chris Granju
Knoxville, TN
'71 FIAT 124BS (pretty), '72 FIAT 124BC,'76 FIAT 128 Wagon(ratbeast), '85 Bertone X 1/9, '70 124BC (project), 79 X1/9 (hot rod in rehab), '73 124BS (2L, mean), '74 124 Special TC, '73 124CS, '73 124 Familiare

grrrdot
Posts: 224
Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2012 11:14 pm
Your car is a: 1967 124

Re: belt squeal

Postby grrrdot » Mon May 29, 2017 8:37 pm

I've been having the exact same problem since installing the alternator, mine is on the passenger side.
The belt squeals on startup and occasionally when the cooling fan kicks in when my headlights are on.
I burned through the first belt very quickly, this second belt has been lasting awhile, neither were cog belts.
I noticed on my volt meter its <13V while its squealing so its somehow load related..

-G

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So Cal Mark
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Re: belt squeal

Postby So Cal Mark » Tue May 30, 2017 12:14 am

high electrical load makes the alternator harder to turn. It's important that the belt is tensioned properly and is matched to the width of the pulley
Mark Allison
allisonsautomotive.com Fiat and Alfa Romeo parts and service. Performance parts our specialty!
Headers, ignitions, wheels, cams, flywheels
starsmark@hotmail.com 909-981-3566

georgeramos
Posts: 1359
Joined: Wed Nov 02, 2011 11:11 am
Your car is a: 1971 124 Spider 1608

Re: belt squeal

Postby georgeramos » Wed May 31, 2017 11:38 pm

It is on the right side here as well. I removed all the thin washers I had originally installed as "spacers" as I think they were placing the pulley too far forward. The alignment is better if not perfect. The squeal has been greatly reduced but still happens occasionally. It still always chirps on startup.

klweimer
Posts: 550
Joined: Tue Mar 27, 2012 7:45 am
Your car is a: 1982 Spider 2000
Location: Arvada, Colorado

Re: belt squeal

Postby klweimer » Thu Jun 01, 2017 8:16 am

What kind of shape is your battery in? If it's going south, that could make your alternator work harder at startup. You might just want to get a new belt. After a lot of slipping, it may be glazed to the point of no return.
Kirk

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johndemar
Posts: 716
Joined: Sun Feb 24, 2008 11:12 am
Your car is a: 1976 Fiat 124 Spider
Location: Phoenix

Re: belt squeal

Postby johndemar » Thu Jun 01, 2017 8:47 am

You may have answered your own question with the spacer washers. I had to use a number of them to get the alignment just right.
76 Fiat 124 Spider
One owner since July 20, 1976
Amadio Motor, Jeannette, PA

sptcoupe
Posts: 987
Joined: Tue Mar 17, 2009 9:25 pm
Your car is a: 1972 124 Sport Coupe

Re: belt squeal

Postby sptcoupe » Tue Jun 06, 2017 9:31 pm

Had the same issue, and I think Mark has hit the nail on the head. The alternator pulley race is narrow on some, and the normal belt just doesn't seat deeply enough to not slip. I changed the belt and have never had a problem since.

grrrdot
Posts: 224
Joined: Mon Jan 02, 2012 11:14 pm
Your car is a: 1967 124

Re: belt squeal

Postby grrrdot » Sat Jun 10, 2017 8:29 am

georgeramos wrote:It is on the right side here as well. I removed all the thin washers I had originally installed as "spacers" as I think they were placing the pulley too far forward. The alignment is better if not perfect. The squeal has been greatly reduced but still happens occasionally. It still always chirps on startup.


So how many washers did you end up with and where?
This is what mine looks like:
Image


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