Hey hoping someone can help me figure this one out, tried for the day on my own but I don’t know much about cars so I feel like I didn’t get far lol. So the other day while heading up to work I went thru a puddle that was deceptively deeper then it appeared and ended up going thru a decent bit of water. The car ended up getting a really bad squeak, thinking it was just water I decided to pop the hood and look. Ended up thinking what the heck and used some wd-40 that kind of worked but the belt came off so I cut the engine and because I thought it snapped I bought a new one (not that it didn’t need a replacement anyway) from the autozone that was conveniently right next to where this happened. Took the old one out and popped the new belt in, started the car up, but now the belt isn’t spinning. Tried doing some googling but haven’t been able to find anything soooo was hoping I’d have luck here. Thanks in advance if anyone has any ideas as to what might be wrong, or if I’m just dumb and nothing’s wrong lol. Car starts doesn’t make any noise and I don’t see any smoke or anything just worried because I feel like it should be doing something
Did you spray wd 40 on the belt & on the pulleys the belt rides on ?
If you were able to install the serpentine belt without touching the serpentine belt tensioner, the serpentine belt tensioner may have failed.
Tester
I was able to remove it without touching the tensioner because it came off when messing with it, but I had to use a wrench to get the new one on there. And I sprayed wd-40 on a couple of the pullys (idle and tension) and the old belt before it came off.
I’m going to give you some advice.
If you have to spray WD40 on any part of the serpentine belt to replace it? That’s not per the factory manual.
Tester
Sounds like you lubed things that wasn’t supposed to be lubed . I’d say you’ll have to remove the new belt & use a cleaner to get all the wd 40 off the pulleys where the belt rides on them & install another new belt . Belts & surfaces they ride on aren’t supposed to be oiled .
Maybe you misrouted the belt, and it’s all loose, and that’s why it’s not spinning
Or maybe the parts guy gave you the wrong belt . . . there were a few different engines available in your Taurus, and they don’t use the same belt
You should be able to tell which is the drive pulley and visibly determine why it isn’t spinning.
These questions also make you sound like a troll as it is literally ridiculous to add wd40 in your situation.
Someone with knowledge to install a new belt also has the knowledge not to lube it with wd40.
Poster is wasting our time.
Maybe you misrouted the belt, and it's all loose, and that's why it's not spinningMy thoughts exactly. You can route the belt in a few different ways, but only one is correct.Or maybe the parts guy gave you the wrong belt . . . there were a few different engines available in your Taurus, and they don’t use the same belt
Are you sure you gave them the correct information regarding which engine you have?
At a previous residence there was a fairly large area / pothole that held water after a rain . Several times when I drove through this , water would splash up on my belts . If I remember correctly that vehicle had 3 . I would have a belt squeak for a short time following this happening .
If his belt got soaked by driving in deep water , I can see him having a belt squeak for quite some time .
Just because the person figured out how to work the tensioner does not mean that this person should know better than to lube a belt @gdawgs. Not all of your posts have been thought provoking.
They come here for help not belittling.
If you are not interested in helping…pass the post up.
Most cars will have a sticker under the hood for the proper belt routing. Or any auto parts store can print you up one. The belt will have soaked up some of that WD40 and you will never get it out. Get a new belt and spray all the pulley surfaces clean with a can of brake cleaner. Spin each pulley by hand to be sure none feel rough or are dragging, (this would indicate a problem with the item that that pulley turns), and be sure the belt is routed correctly.
Then next time you pass that autozone, check to see. Maybe they have a hose out there filling that deceptive puddle and they shut off the water when they sell enough belts to pay the light bill.
Yosemite
... but I had to use a wrench to get the new one on there.Did the tensioner spring back against the belt? If you have the old belt, compare it with the new belt for length.
Then next time you pass that autozone, check to see. Maybe they have a hose out there filling that deceptive puddle and they shut off the water when they sell enough belts to pay the light bill.Any AutoZone employee who tried that would be sent packing immediately by someone up the corporate food chain. Not to mention it would be a really low-percentage way to drum up business in the first place.