Serpentine Belt Keeps Going Bad on '15

Hey gang,

So my 2015 just got its third serpentine belt since I've owned it - bought it with 36k miles in 2017, just eclipsed 100k last month. What on earth could it be? The dealership looked into it, says everything checks out - I continue to go to the dealership because I bought the extended warranty for the truck.

I DO NOT off road, if that even matters. 70% of the mileage is highway. The truck is manual. I don't drive like a knucklehead, these trucks are expensive I do not have the disposable cash to beat on it and fix it.

I think my next move is to take it somewhere else and have them look at the pulleys, that is only thing I can think of that would eat serp belts.

Any and all insight is greatly appreciated.

 

Sure would help if you told us exactly how it is going bad.

 

Pulley alignment/bearings, foreign substances (coolant, oil, etc...), and improper installation are about all that will destroy a belt. As Fullboogie said it would help to know how it was failing.

 

That sounds too high, agreed. I just replaced mine at 112-113K on my 2010 last fall. The belt probably could have been still used, but with the age, getting a new one for basically free, and the cold weather season being here I felt it best to just do it for peace of mind.

That said, I would agree with your statement that the pulleys should be checked as well as the tensioner. If one pulley is acting up just replace them all is my advice to you. Pretty sure you can find the set for 100-150 or so online if I remember right.

 

I was told it had a large "crack".

 

That's very vague, I would want to ask for the old parts and see for myself what it looked like.

 

You're going have to actually open the hood and look at the belt or this is pointless..

 

If I didn't need help figuring this out I wouldn't have posted on the forum. Not everyone has experience with motors.

 

look at the part yourself. dealerships are rarely trustworthy.

 

Take some pictures of the belt and drive pulleys and post them otherwise I'm afraid we won't be able to help you much.

 

Wondering what is leading you to replace the belt? Is it due to failure? Noise? Or mechanic/dealer advice? OEM belt or an aftermarket brand? If good belts are being put on to start with then it has to be something it’s spinning on or external debris/contaminants causing issues. Have you noticed any squeaking or chirping? Any issues with any drive belt components that might impact the belt (alt, ac, water pump)?

 

I get what you are saying but sometimes YOU need to put some effort into finding a solution to the problem.
Fuck it.
Good luck buying belts.

 

Or installing the wrong belt, admittedly a long shot. Very doubtful the dealership would install an incorrect belt three times.... but you never know.

 

The above comments are an indication of what could be wrong. Not being able to see even
images is somewhat of a crap shoot to say for sure what is the problem.
Do you have any of the belts they took off ?
If so look at the ribs and the flat side for damage.
The tensioner itself may be damaged.
Again as mentioned any squeal or scrubbing sounds when engine is running in neutral / hood open?
It is possible one of the pulleys is cracked or damaged.
If an idler pulley has a bad bearing it MAY not make any noise
but would be prone to get really hot.
3 belts in short order means something is wrong- Have it inspected up close.

 

Best advice I can up with is take it to another mechanic and a second opinion. At the very least. All we can do is guess at this point.

 

Ask them to show you the "crack" next time. A couple cracks here and there on individual ribs is not a big deal. A big crack that goes through multiple ribs in the same place is reason to replace.

 

Not a bad idea, but if you're already replaced the belt recently it can't hurt to at least check the pulleys.

 

O.P. if your belt was installed correctly,then 1 or more of your pulleys is bad/bent,you will have too take the belt off and check all the pulleys for smooth operation,its not a hard job at all.

 

Gotta agree with this. Without pictures of the failed belts, while all solid advice, the posts above are literally throwing darts in the dark while blindfolded. The dealer could just be taking you (OP) for a ride for normal cracking on a serp belt.

 

Is the belt failing and leaving you sitting, or are you just being told that the belt is bad by the dealer service writer when you’re in for an oil change ?
Belts do have a decently long lifespan, changing them prior to actually failing is preferred, as sitting on the roadside isn’t fun, or ideal.

If you’re being told this when in for periodic maintenance then you’re being “upsold” by the service writer, they make $$$ on anything they can push. The tech also makes money on any other service or parts he can “up sell” you may not actually “need” it as bad as they are is where being informed and aware comes in.
A lot of folks don’t even know how to open the hood, let alone know the different components.
Keep a mileage ledger for repairs in your phone or laptop, tracking mileage and repairs and suggested repairs. Replacing a belt every 20k is over kill, 50-75k is reasonable, but still not really normal. 80-100k I’d let it happen. This is replacement mileage from its LAST replacement, not actual odometer miles.

Dealerships tend to be overly dramatic to make the sale, I just had my work van in for a broken oil fill pipe (it’s been broken for several weeks, but I just saw it yesterday) They recommended it staying there and not driving it because oil “might” spill out and cause a fire...... the reason I even looked was I could smell oil, when I looked I found the broken fill pipe at a support bracket, but there was no oil mess anywhere....(BTW I AM a mechanic by trade, the ONLY reason this was at the dealer was because van is still under 3/36 warranty, otherwise I would do the repair myself.) I also used to work for the dealer I took it too, but it’s been long enough most everyone I knew or worked with has moved on, I know the game. It hasn’t changed since I was there.