I have '93 dodge intrepid 3.3L V6. The AC belt broke last week. The AC has not worked in years. Is it okay to leave the belt of permanently? My only concern is that the serpentine belt was pulling one way on the harmonic balancer and the AC belt was pulling the other. I’d hate to end up with a crankshaft issue because it’s only getting pulled in one direction. If it helps, I drive the car daily on the interstate. Also, I am moving in 6 months and the car is not coming with me (maybe I’ll donate it to my local NPR station).
If the A/C was all that was driven by that belt, leave it off. If there is another device on the belt, a by-pass belt may be necessary. The supposed ‘balanced’ tension on the harmonic balancer is not an issue. The tension of the belt pulling on the balancer is nothing as long as the balancer is fitted to the crankshaft properly, and the bolt is tensioned correctly.
Definitely nothing else on that belt. I have been checking the serpentine belt every couple of days to make sure it’s not fraying or wearing down. The car doesn’t seem to be making any more noise than it did before. I’ll keep my fingers crossed.