Accessory serpentine belt size?

Tiny
CARLOSLAMES
  • MEMBER
  • 2001 BMW 330CI
  • 3.0L
  • 6 CYL
  • 2WD
  • AUTOMATIC
  • 145,000 MILES
So I just bought the car listed above convertible. The belt squeaks bad. I replaced it with a new one. Still squeaks. I replaced all pulleys as well. This car has mechanical tensioner. Just the pulleys were replaced. Found that the idler pull and tensioner pulley touch. So the belt touches as well. This is were squeak comes from. I took it to BMW mech. He said belt is routed wrong is why pulleys touch. Rerouted as described now the belt does not fit. My research turned up a different belt part number at BMW dealership. I purchased it and it is too short. Once installed best I can now there's no room for the top pulley and belt is tight as it can go. However my squeak is gone. What did I do wrong?
Thursday, May 6th, 2021 AT 8:26 PM

1 Reply

Tiny
HARRY P
  • MECHANIC
  • 2,295 POSTS
Let's start simple. I've attached the belt routing images for this car. Note that there are 2 belts in a car with A/C. So one belt will not reach every pulley. Please double-check your routing and get back to us.

When you say it has a mechanical tensioner, do you mean that it's spring loaded to automatically apply tension? If so, have you replaced the tensioner itself? Or just the pulley? Because if that tensioner is worn out and not applying enough tension, the belt will squeal like heck.
Images (Click to make bigger)
Thumb
Thumb
Was this
answer
helpful?
Yes
No
Thursday, May 6th, 2021 AT 10:07 PM

Please login or register to post a reply.