I have an '04 Matrix named Virginia. She's got about 23,000 miles on her odometer and has developed an embarrasing squealing noise coming from her serpentine belt. Virginia started making this noise during the coldest part of the past Massachusetts winter. The noise comes and goes, but it's generally annoying and I want to fix it.
But Virginia is different than all the other Toyotas I have owned. Instead of the belt tension being applied via an adjustment bolt (e.g.: on the alternator), her serpentine belt is tensioned by a spring device that I am not familiar with. How can this tensioner be adjusted to eliminate the squeal? Or, does the squealing indicate there could be a problem with the belt or tensioning device?
This is the only problem Virginia has. I change her oil and filter myself every 3-5000 miles. I took her once to the dealer I bought her from for a scheduled maintenance inspection to protect her warranty. Unfortunately, the dealer proved themselves to be very untrustworthy and I will never take her there again. If a warranted part proves defective, how can I get Toyota to replace it without going through a terrible dealer?
Thanks,
Elmer