Why would a serpentine belt break?

Why would a serpentine belt break?

Serpentine belts can fail in a few different ways. This is usually the result of a belt in poor condition, or a problem with one of the accessory components being driven by the belt. A failed bearing in a pulley being driven by the serpentine belt will also cause the belt to break.

What happens to a car when the serpentine belt breaks while driving?

If a serpentine belt is broken, it can lead to a sudden loss of power assist for the steering system. This happens because the serpentine belt keeps the water pump circulating coolant, also known as antifreeze, through the cooling system. This means that the engine can overheat anywhere, including the highway.

What happens if a belt tensioner breaks?

Another symptom of bad or failing drive belt tensioner is failure of the belt driven accessories. A seized or loose drive belt tensioner can cause the belt to snap, which will disables those accessories and can cause problems such as overheating, a dead electrical system and battery, or a disabled AC system.

Will a car start with a broken serpentine belt?

The short answer is yes, your car will start even if the serpentine belt is broken or missing. To get the car going, the battery sends power to your starter motor. The starter motor provides enough power to get your engine moving and the combustion process started.

How do you change the serpentine belt on an Acura TL?

Using the boxed end of the 14mm combination wrench, turn the tensioner pulley (Figure 1) counter clockwise to allow the serpentine belt can to loosen on the pulleys. Keep tension on the tensioner pulley until the serpentine belt can be removed from a single pulley.

Where is the tensioner pulley on an Acura TL?

The easiest pulley to get to is the power steering pulley at the top of the engine. Once the belt is pulled off the first pulley, release the tension on the tensioner pulley. Continue to pull the belt off of the other pulleys until completely removed. Figure 1. Tensioner pulley location. Take the new belt out of the wrapper.

How big is the Gates belt on an Acura TL?

For instance, the Gates belt, PN: K060841, indicates the belt is 6 ribs wide and approximately 84″ long. With the new belt in hand, loop the belt with enough of it to fit over the crankshaft pulley. Feed the looped belt down the front of the engine and secure the loop around the crankshaft pulley.

What happens if the serpentine belt is not working?

It provides power for the air conditioning, alternator, power steering, and sometimes the cooling system water pump. The serpentine belt is a critical part of this system, and once the engine is running, it continues to operate until the vehicle is shut off. Without a properly functioning serpentine belt, the engine may not run at all.