Serpentine belt change... results

Hi,


I bought my Tacoma v6 4x4 2012 back in 2015 with around 80,000 kms on it; now I have near 170,000 kms, and as far as I recall the serpentine belt had never been changed; don't now if the previous owner had it changed. I took the truck to a local Toyota dealership to have it replaced... The old belt had a brownish color, was dry with a few cracks on the rubber guides. Driving with the new belt, I felt the motor more responsive, indeed better. What would be the logic behind this better power response?


Regards

 

Better alternator traction

 

maybe they did a diagnostic scan while it was in there that usually automatically clears when exiting and reset everything

 

I can’t think of any reason it would run better by changing the belt

 

I’ve found hitting the erase codes function with the scan tool does the same as disconnecting the battery, except the clock & radio don’t need to be reset after.

 

placebo effect

 

This is how I feel after doing my Big 7 upgrade. I'm sure it's just placebo.

 

Placebo. Nonetheless good you got it done. Dont want to be left with a broken belt

 

Either carry an extra belt or a pair of panty hose and tools to fix it. Otherwise, get AAA and tow it.

 

Do I wanna know?

 

I don't think they erased codes, nor did any ECU / battery reset; I have the ECU re-flashed for better performance, and the re-programming is still there.

 

I think it’s so you can hitch a ride

 

It's an old school trick.

 

IYKYK

 

I searched a bit on the web on bad serpentine belt symptoms... As per this site

6. Power Loss
If the serpentine belt is damaged or broken, it can cause a loss of power. A serpentine belt is responsible for driving several engine components, including the alternator, power steering pump, and water pump.

If the belt is worn or damaged, it can cause these components to work less efficiently, resulting in poor engine performance

So, makes sense what I perceived.

Thank you all, for your comments!

 

It would have to be slipping (and squealing) to affect alternator/water pump/power steering performance. And that would be the fault of a weak tensioner

 

Bad data here. A slipping belt would impact the performance of those components listed, but none of them are considered the engine and will not impact engine performance. An exception is the water pump, but unless temps rose above the target, no engine performance is lost.