Did your fan belts suddenly break?

They might just need to be adjusted a little tighter. It's normal for them to stretch over time

 

I had an alternator belt snap shortly after buying a 3g T4R, left the wife and I stranded and had to walk to a parts store and change it in a parking lot. Cheap peace of mind if you can afford to fix it on your own terms.

 

Ok, belts actually wear away over time, like tires. They are designed with a wear life. If you see wear, it is beyond when it should of been replaced. If money is a issue, order a Gates or Dayco brand belt from rockauto or Amazon. Those are the only two brands I use. Ask for help on here, someone is near you who will be glad to help you install the belt and teach you how to do it yourself.
95% of the people on here are cool.

 

I had a belt break suddenly. The idler pulley locked up and it took out the belt, fan, shroud, and radiator. Fix it now before it gets expensive

 

I bought a new car and the power steering pump started leaking at 15K. The work was done under warranty, but the dealership suggested that the serpentine belt should be replaced because of cracking across the ribs. The belt was not warrantied and I would have to pay for it out of pocket.

Belts crack. Just about any belt will have cracks after being on a vehicle for a couple of months or so. The rubber components on a vehicle are supposedly rated for 8 years of life minimum.

So I refused the new belt they were trying to sell and told them to reinstall the old belt. I was curious to see how far the belt would go since the dealership was trying to sell it. I sold the car at just under 100K with that belt on it and the belt looked just like it did at 15K.

Belts don't need to be replaced because they are cracked. Once they start losing chunks of ribs they are ready to be changed out, and if they start to lose chunks of the layers beneath the ribs replacement is critical.

As for the squeal... a bad bearing in your idler/water pump/alternator can cause belt breakage immediately should the bearing lock up.

 

I've been looking for 75/25 blinker fluid

 

I think I replaced my belts about 100,000 miles ago.

 

Concentrate is the best value, then you can dilute it as needed. Are you sure you want 75/25 and not 50/50? Blinker fluid is easy to mess up these days

 

I take it…idler pulley squeaking upon startup…matter of time before belts absolutely should be changed soon. Vagabond Tacoma owner. I can take a pic. I don’t see any “fraying.”
Hehe….”150K on my belts.”

 

I heard 75/25 work best. Like welding gas.

 

When my AC idler pulley was going bad it just made a constant rough sound. I don't remember it squeaking. Having the v-belts too lose can cause them to slip when you start the engine and cause that momentary squeak.

If you hear a rough sound or a repetitive chirping noise then I'd suspect the pulley.

 

Play it safe and put a new belt as mentioned by others