peanut

in the past few weeks I occasionally get a squealing sound from the alternator area which I assumed was a slippling belt

.I bought a new alternator belt but the recent bad weather stopped me from replacing it .

Today it started squealing and I noticed that the voltage meter dropped from 13v+ to less than 11v whilst it was squealing then went back to 14v when the squealing stopped.

Am I looking at a seized alternator bearing ? or something else ?

luftpirate

Take the belt off and feel the pulley on the alt by hand. You should be able to tell if its a bad bearing, also check for play in the shaft.

peanut

yes I could do that but it looks a bit of a job to do especially outdoors in this weather. If I get it to bits and find I need a new alternator my only car is going to be off the road for a week .

I was hoping to get some opinions on possible causes from others that have experienced the same thing before ripping the thing to bits.
The other problem that I have is the car is due in the repair shop any time soon for a new bumper and paint job so must be drivable

Viperns

Mine started squealing int he rain today, It has never done that before, I'm not sure what it was from exactly as I was driving, but it went away after 20 secs or so. It happened twice both times while making a turn. not much help for your cause though. I think my belt was wet because of the rain.

m73m95

I belt did the same thing last night, in the rain here. Then my power steering went away for a few seconds.

I need to tighten my belt a little, and I think you guys do too! lol

Luis de Prat

This sounds like your alternator belt is a tad loose. Tighten it up very slightly with two 17mm open ended wrenches and it will be quiet again.

NOTE: Do NOT overtighten, or you'll end up buying a new A/C compressor.

Mark944na86

"If you hear hoof beats, think horses, not zebras."

In other words, try the obvious first: Tighten your alt belt. If that doesn't fix it (98% chance it will), start looking for those zebras.