The best reason to embark on a maintenance program for your vehicle is to save yourself both money and time. You can save money by avoiding expensive repairs and you can save time by not needed to wait for repairs to be done. One of the most simple aspects of vehicle maintenance is keeping a check on the quality of your oil, and having it changed regularly. Checking your tires for wear and tear, as well as maintaining correct air pressure, is also important. Thirdly, ensure that the belts in your vehicle are kept in good condition and replaced as required.
Checking your vehicle’s belts:
At your vehicle’s sixty-thousand mile tune-up make sure that your belts are changed, whether or not they are showing signs of wear. Considering that the sixty-thousand mile tune-up includes changing the timing belt, you should not be charged for any additional labor for your mechanic to change the other belts.
Before checking the belts yourself make sure to turn off the engine. Make sure the engine and belts have cooled before attempting to touch them. When you’re ready to begin, open the hood by first pulling the hood release located beneath the dashboard and then either squeezing or sliding the latch under the hood itself.
Once the hood is open, take a look inside. The belts are located at the front of the vehicle’s engine. The engine’s orientation depends on whether your vehicle is rear or front wheel drive. In rear wheel drive vehicles the engine is set closer to the front, whereas the engine is set further back in front wheel drive vehicles.
Check how many belts you can see.
The make and model of your vehicle will determine the number of belts you will find. The belts are responsible for driving components such as the alternator, fan and water, smog and power steering pumps. As such, they are collectively called drive belts. There will be a minimum of two belts on your vehicle. Each belt runs over a pulley. As you locate them, press lightly in the middle of the longest part of the belt with your thumb to test the tension. Look at the owner’s manual for your vehicle to see how much give in the belt should have. Usually it is less than an inch of give when you press down gently.
This is also a good time to check the belt for any signs of cracks or drying out. It is normal to notice a small amount of cracking on the belt. However there should not be larger chunks missing.Check for missing pieces or large cracks but note that some small cracking is normal and nothing to worry about. You may also notice some minor rust discoloration. This is also fine. The action of the belt, especially the one for the air conditioning clutch, creates a fine dust and this will rust over time. It does not hurt anything. If the belt has too much give or you see obvious signs of wear then it needs to be replaced before it breaks. A screeching sound when you hit the gas is an indication that the belt is too lose. In this case, the belt will need to either be replaced or tightened. Should one of your belts break, it can be an expensive repair.
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Tags: automobile, Automotive, cars
