Dave_Corrado16v 0 Posted March 11, 2003 Hi all. Ive just bought an '89 1.8 16v and its been making an awful whining noise. The garage have readjusted the cambelt tensioner, which has improved it, but the mechanic reckons that my power steering belt etc is really old and dried out. he said when he spray Belt Dressing on it, it shut it up - but the sound has come back after a day or two. Im guessing an alternator belt is really easy (undo bolt, slacken off Alternator, remove belt, refit new one, tighten and rebolt?) but how the hell do i do the other belt(s)? There seems to be a couple down there! I definately need to do the PAS belt as i can hear it whine when i turn the wheel when stationary! What are all the other belts (apart from the Timing/Cam belt) and how the hell do i change them? Also bear in mind im about as mechanically minded as your average Hamster ;) Cheers guys Dave Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Scott 0 Posted March 11, 2003 Hi all. Ive just bought an '89 1.8 16v and its been making an awful whining noise. The garage have readjusted the cambelt tensioner, which has improved it, but the mechanic reckons that my power steering belt etc is really old and dried out. he said when he spray Belt Dressing on it, it shut it up - but the sound has come back after a day or two. Im guessing an alternator belt is really easy (undo bolt, slacken off Alternator, remove belt, refit new one, tighten and rebolt?) but how the hell do i do the other belt(s)? There seems to be a couple down there! I definately need to do the PAS belt as i can hear it whine when i turn the wheel when stationary! What are all the other belts (apart from the Timing/Cam belt) and how the hell do i change them? Also bear in mind im about as mechanically minded as your average Hamster ;) Cheers guys Dave Hello mate, All the belts are a piece of cake to do on the 1.8 16V..... as you say for alternator you knock off the bolt that tensions it then replace belt and tighten up - remember not to tighten the belt too much as can stress the bearings on the alternator.... power steering belt is a similar job but you will have to do it from underneath - this belt only runs from crank to ps pump - ie. two pulleys... so once you have loosened it off, replace belt and tighten up again - *:) - all very easy - a decent haynes golf manual will take you through the job step by step. Other than these belts the only other belt is the timing belt.... this needs to be done every 40k miles - VW state 60k but I always did mine at 40k to be on safe side.... again its a simple job considering its a 16V - ie. you dont need to worry about lining up to camshafts as the belt only runs round one of the pulleys due to a chain on other side of engine connecting two pulleys together.... One thing to check out whilst you are in that area is the water pump - I assumed my problem was wrongly the alternator bearings giving up the ghost.... not so - driving back from London was alarmed to find I was losing water fast... the pump bearings had failed - sounded awful! Cheers, Scott Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dave_Corrado16v 0 Posted March 11, 2003 Well it was in the garage the other day to get the cambelt tension adjusted - mechanic also sprayed something on the PAS and alternator belts and it went silent - until they dried out! lol Thanks for the help mate, much appreciated - i actually HAD a Haynes Golf manual as my last car was a Mk2 8v Golf GTI - but i STUPIDLY gave the manual away when i sold teh car! DOH! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Bacon 5 Posted March 12, 2003 There's sweet FA about the 16V in the Haynes book anyway. One thing to watch when doing the belts is the water pump/PAS pulley. If it's the same as the Golf 16V, it will be a viscous coupling variety. Basically, this pulley (the large one) has a special coupling inside it to allow the PAS pulley to spin at different rate to the water pump pulley. It's a god awful bit of design and they break really easily, splitting in two. They make a horrid rattling noise when they're screwed too. They cost £150 from the dealer, so try not to knock it about too much when you're down there. If there is only one pulley on the crankshaft, ignore this as it will be the same configuration as the 8V. As for the whining noise, sounds like the cambelt is too tight. I would replace the belt anyway as a matter of course (only use VAG belts) and the tensioner too. Correct tension on 16V belts is debateable as VW claim you have to use a dial guage to set the tension. Arse, I've been running valvers for a decade and you simply need to tighten it enough so that you can only just twist the belt 90 degrees with your fingers. If you can twist it further with ease, you are either Arnlold Schwarzengger or it's too slack. Cheers Kev 94 VR6 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Scott 0 Posted March 13, 2003 There's sweet FA about the 16V in the Haynes book anyway. Well that depends which one you have as there are two - the red one and the green type *;) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dave_Corrado16v 0 Posted March 13, 2003 i dont quite know what you mean about a viscous coupling thingymabob! Ive had the cambelt tension checked, apparently its ok. The mechanic told me that the PAS belt was really old and was whining as well as the cambelt. He said that he sprayed 'belt dressing' (Halfords have never heard of this stuff?) on it and it stopped whining - but as it dried out again its started to whine again. If this viscous coupling thingy is brittle, would i be better off getting a garage to fit the PAS belt? Also, can this coupling thing be bought cheaply from Eurocarparts, and if so, would it be advisable to replace it whilst in there? Cheers again guys - i really appreciate all this advice! Ta! Dave Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jim 1 Posted March 13, 2003 Belt dressing - aka - WD40 :) Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dave_Corrado16v 0 Posted March 13, 2003 LOL really?! Ill try spraying some on my belts. I might try some GT85 actually - its bicycle chain lube, has some kind of lubricant in it rather than just drying off! Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Jim 1 Posted March 13, 2003 You aren't generally supposed to put WD40 on belts, but seriously, if you have a problem with a loud belt a squirt of WD40 shuts it right up. But its only a short term fix - a new belt is only like 15 quid so its worth getting it swapped if its noisy. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Bacon 5 Posted March 13, 2003 You can't get that pulley from anywhere except the stealer, but as I say, check the car has it before assuming the worst! I can't really explain much about it other than if you've got two pulleys side-by-side on the crankshaft, then you have this troublsome pulley I mentioned, if you've got just the one pulley, ignore what I said. I wouldn't put WD40 on any rubber, it's petroleum based and therefore eats rubber. Use Halfords Rubber & Plastic Silicon maintanence spray instead, comes in a yellow can and sits next to the spray grease on the shelves. Fact of the day - WD 40 got it's name from being right after the 40th attempt at the blend! Ta Kev 94 VR6 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dave_Corrado16v 0 Posted March 14, 2003 Update chaps :) Yesterday i sprayed some WD40 style stuff on the Alternator belt - it shut it right up! The PAS belt is still making a bit of a whining noise, but its a LOT LOT better - seems that the main culprit is the Alternator belt. Ive rung the stealer and they want £4.20+vat for a new belt so ill fit one on Sunday. Talking of pulleys - looks like i have two side by side at the bottom of the engine. Arse. Looks like ill leave the PAS belt for a while! Thanks for all your help chaps - ill let you know how i get on! :) Dave Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Kevin Bacon 5 Posted March 14, 2003 Don't worry about it mate, just be careful with it that's all. You only need to worry about that if it rattles. You can test it by gently wobbling it left to right, there should be the smallest amount of play. If it's loose as hell, change it out. Many people weld them up but don't do this, it's designed that way for a reason. Cheers Kev 94 VR6 Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Dave_Corrado16v 0 Posted March 17, 2003 Cheers mate - i still think ill avoid playing with the PAS bits ;) I tried changing the Alternator belt on the Corrado yesterday - loosened alterator, moved it and took belt off the alternator pulley - but the belt wouldnt come away at the bottom of the engine - looks like its caught around the power steering pulleys etc - do you have to remove half the PAS gubbins to get the alternator belt off?!!? Seems a little daft if thats the case! Cheers Dave Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
VR6 0 Posted March 17, 2003 Think we'll just shift this to servicing, if you don't mind. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
