Squeaky noise when starting truck?

I notice yesteday that when I crank the truck to start it it made a squeaky noise. It happened again today in the morning. It only happens when the engine is cold. The temperature been dropping here. Any ideas my truck 2003 Taco 3.4l thanks in advance.

 

Might be a belt. They don't always make a loud squeal, either. Sometimes just a rhythmic squeak for the first few minutes. On my old '04 it was the PS belt. A quick way to diagnose - take a spray bottle, put 2 cups of water in it and 1/2-1 tsp of dish soap. Cap it off, shake it up well, open hood, start truck and lightly spray each belt, one at a time until the noise goes away. Then you'll know which belt you have to mess with.

If that isn't it, it could also be the idler pulley that sits down low in the engine compartment. Those are known to get full of mud, road grit, sand, etc. I'd start with belts and move on to pulleys from there.

 

I dnt think is the belts since it only does it when I crank it up to start it. When at idle no noise at all.

 

Could be the alternator belt. Mine squeaks just for a second when starting the truck cold. More drag on the alternator and a slightly loose belt=just a little squeak. Unfortunately my tensioner is broken and I really don't feel like digging into it right now.

 

Check ALL of your accessory belts. Make sure they are tight enough.
Usually - a squeek like that means they are too loose.

If you tighten the belts up and you still get a squeek, it could be a bearing. Check the A/C idler bearing. They are known to go bad because they are so low on the truck exposing it to more water/mud.

If the bearing is 'going bad' - it can/will squeek initially until the lubricants inside (what's left) get warmed up and moved around inside the bearing.

 

Piggy backing this thread.

My truck also squeals for a second upon start up when it's really cold outside.

When I check my belts how tight should they be?

If they are loose, how do I go about tightening them... specifically the alternator belt which seems to be the culprit according to this thread and others I read.

TIA

 

nvm

adjusting my search terms I found this: http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/1st-gen-tacomas/4242-belts-makin-noise.html