shamrock

I'm sorry if this seems a very basic question but if you can allay my fears I'd appreciate it.
My car's a '96 C2 with 47k miles on the odo. I don't have a garage , so keep her under a car cover.
It's not my every day grunt , so recently a week went by before I got out in her.
I'm used to the fan/drive belts rhythmic chirping on start up for the first minute or so , but this time , the 'chirping' for want of a better word , was louder than usual , and continued for at least the first 10 minutes of driving , then disappearing.
I've had the car out a number of times since and the squealing belt has returned to the 1 minute variety rather than the 10 minute one!

As an aside , for the week the car wasn't used , the weather here was above freezing but damp/wet.
All belts look in good condition to my amateurs eye.

Do I have any thing to worry about ,or more to the point does anyone here have a quick fix?

Thanks in advance.

Marlon

'Sounds' like the classic symptoms of your belt sensor going South. You can get in the engine compartment and look down and see a little plastic box with a wheel on a lever sticking out with the wheel against your belt. The bearing in the 'wheel' is going bad. Easy fix to replace. You can very lightly dab a little lite weigth oil into the wheel axle to calm it down for a while though.

geolab

please do oil the small plastic wheel with the motor OFF.
If this does not cure, take a small bottle of water out in the morning and start the engine.
While it starts turning and making the sound, pour some water in the middle, on the big engine pulley down
in front of the engine fan.
The sound will go away directly.
The reason is salt.
It sticks in the belts when they turn around in the pulley like crystals
A few flushes of water will disolve the salt

J.A.W.S.

silicone spray.


rgds

shamrock

I'm not sure if you're referring to the salt put on winter roads , if you are , this is not the problem as the roads aren't salted in Ireland.

shamrock

WD40?

Where would I spray it? .. I'm going to have to do a little more engine peering , that little plastic wheel doesn't sound familar!

If any one had pictures it'd be a big help thanks...

Dudley

Robin Sun's P-Car website has the DIY for the belt sensor.

http://p-car.com/diy/roller/

Pictures included.

jimbo3

DO NOT USE SILICON. DO NOT SPRAY ANY LUBRICANTS IN OR AROUND THE BELT AREA.

If your belts are squealing due to improper tension, then re-tension. If properly tensioned and they still squeal, there are belts dressings on the market to help glazed belts to get traction on the pulleys. Any auto parts place has it.

J.A.W.S.

perfect results with that spray for years......


rgds

roddylennox

I agree with jimbo3 - loose belt is the likely cause. They stretch slightly from new, then the pullies need a shim removing to tighten the belt. Belt sprays don't lead to a lasting solution, probably only work for a few minutes or hours of driving. You can also get upgraded pullies from Porsche if you're going to be really thorough - the early ones can disintegrate & dent the engine cover!

Roddy

shamrock

Too Late!
I've just sprayed WD 40 on the sensor wheel...

What the heck ... My first bit of DIY .. Hopefully I didn't do too much damage!

shamrock

Thanks Dudley , that's just about where I sprayed the WD40 , although I skipped the 'remove the sender' bit! ..

jimbo3

Squealing from a loose belt is from the belt slipping on the pulley, just like squealing tires on dry pavement. Lubricating the belt might make it quieter just like tire spin would be quieter over a puddle of oil, but slippage is increased. The objective is to give the belt traction and lubricating is the antithesis of that. Some lubricants may also deteriorate the belt.

shamrock

Is there a way of checking (in lay mans terms) to see if the belt is too loose or if it's the sender at fault??

Dudley

I suppose your could tie back the wheel so that it did not roll on the belt. Any squeal then would point to the belt.

Napa Auto part stores sells the Kricket belt tension guage for @ $10. This device would tell you if the belt tension is within Porsche specifications.