94 Plymouth Acclaim Squeaks like an SOB

Now that you've sprayed belt dressing on it, you may as well cut it off. That belt will never run quiet with that glop on it. If the AC still works, you can have a new belt installed in spring, make sure the shop that does the work knows about the belt dressing so they can clean the pulleys before the new belt becomes contaminated.

The belt dressing did not cause or perpetuate the problem. It makes the same noise at the same times as it did before I sprayed the belt dressing on it.

I would appreciate any information on how to tighten or loosen the belt or other possible causes for the squeal (besides the belt dressing).

I believe that car uses a serpentine belt and there should be a tensioner pulley that rides on the belt. You will have to simply follow the track of the belt and find it. Don't overtighten it however. I find it strange that a haynes motor manual for that car does not address belt tightening.

I agree with the other poster that a permanent fix will involve cleaning all the pulleys.

Regardless, the belt is now junk because of it. There are certain products on the market that do more harm than good, belt dressing is one of them.

Depends on which engine is in your Acclaim. You haven't revealed that yet.

Most ChryCo vehicles of that vintage have an idler pulley that is adjusted by a draw screw.

Pulleys. My loudest squeak came from the air-conditioning belt idler pulley. I have another and I'm sure it's another bad bearing in another pulley. The pulleys are available at the dealer. Use a stethoscope to track down the one(s) that squeak(s).

I just thought to say: mine is the 3.0L. But we've replaced two front pulleys and the timing-belt tensioner pulley so far and there are more squeaking, so I kinda doubt the 2.5L engines had better pulleys.

Are you sure that belt is just for the A/C? Some cars have a serpentine belt that runs several accessories. If the belt is slipping even when the compressor isn't engaged I don't think tightening is going to help you much.... If it just runs the a/c you can cut the belt and remove but your defroster won't work as good without the a/c running.

Allowing the belt to slip as you have has ruined that belt and it will have to be replaced regardless. When belts slip they overheat and glaze which makes them slip worse which makes them glaze worse which......... Spraying crap on it didn't help either as was pointed out by another poster. Magic in a bottle is seldom a good fix to any automotive problem.

Steve B.

I don't think the belt is slipping. I have the same make, model and year of car and I'd bet a rusty donut he stopped the squeak by putting WD40 on the pulleys. That also explains why the squeak only went away for a short time. Then again, the bearings appear to be sealed types, so if he got the squeak then they're no longer sealed and therefore not fixable with oil.

I'm sure you are correct clifto. That is the only thing that makes sense. I do have a mechanics stethoscope so I'll see if I can pin it down. Thanks for all your help!

I'll take your bet and raise you a broken lug nut. The bearings are sealed and covered so it would take a heck of a lot of WD40 to get in there even with a failed seal. Hope the OP follows up when the problem is resolved so we know the outcome.

Steve B.

Well, if it's a 3.0 L it does. If it's a 2.5L, it doesn't.

It occurred to me after I posted that the WD40 could have gotten between the hub and the bearing inner sleeve. I could imagine friction heat damaging the seal, but that takes a lot of imagination.

It is a 2.5L.

I got sick of hearing that very loud squeal and I cut off the a/c belt. Guess what? Yep, still squealed. Apparently this car has a sense of humor. When I had sprayed the WD-40 I think it must have been toying with me. The squeal is coming from a different pulley and will sometimes come and go at will. When it is cold outside it really squeals bad. When driving it in the afternoon today it didn't make a peep and even this evening it didn't make a sound until we turned on the heat. Once that fan started blowing it started to squeal and even with no fan going it continued. That was why we always thought it was related to the a/c belt. Most of the time it didn't start squealing until we turned the a/c or defrost on. I still haven't checked with the stethoscope but I'll get to it in the next few days.

Most likely the alternator making it squeal. The more electrical load you have the harder the alternator works. I would check the pensioner and make sure it is working right and replace the serpentine belt.

Steve B.

what? Yep, still squealed. Apparently this car has a

I tried posting from trn, but--duh--probably hit reply (by email) rather than followup (to group).

See if your alternator pulley lines up with the other pulleys. On earlier Chrysler 2.5s, the alternator pivots on a shaft which sits in a couple of rubber donuts in the bracket. The rubber donuts on my '80s

I went to the junkyard, and got bushings in much better shape, a near- new Gates belt, and a nice-looking alternator for about $25. As it turned out, the alternator needed new brushes, but after that it worked perfectly. Oh, and no more squeal!