Snapped serpentine belt and some manly luck
Discussion
12 year old Merc A150
Driving round M25 on Saturday just as we reach the Dartford Bridge " Alternate problem visit workshop" appears on the dash.
Bugger.
The car would not rev but we managed to crawl up the bridge, just before the top we were in second gear with the temp at 120c.
Rolling down the other side the temp dropped back to 90c with some ability to rev. Not fully appreciating the issue I turned the blower max to assist in removing heat from the engine, all it did was blow ambient air. Perhaps the alternator issue was effecting temperature gauge ?
We live about 2.5 miles from the bridge and managed to crawl almost all the way home at 100c. Going up a small hill it hit 120c again and the "temp high stop" warning appeared.
Stopped, let it cool for 10 mins and limped the last half mile home.
My basic knowledge suggested belt, had a look in engine bay and managed to pull out a scruffy looking piece of rubber 1.7m long !
Penny drops now, the belt runs the alternator, air con pump and more importantly the water pump.......
Access to the belt is from underneath and space between the engine and chassis must be about an inch and a half.
Threading the belt is fiddly and then to slacken off the tensioner you need a long 15mm spanner - who has such a tool ????
I managed to get one from Halfords that was just long enough to get leverage on it, 30 mins and it is back on and running ok.
Hopefully no lasting damage, although car is probably on its last legs now anyway !.
Driving round M25 on Saturday just as we reach the Dartford Bridge " Alternate problem visit workshop" appears on the dash.
Bugger.
The car would not rev but we managed to crawl up the bridge, just before the top we were in second gear with the temp at 120c.
Rolling down the other side the temp dropped back to 90c with some ability to rev. Not fully appreciating the issue I turned the blower max to assist in removing heat from the engine, all it did was blow ambient air. Perhaps the alternator issue was effecting temperature gauge ?
We live about 2.5 miles from the bridge and managed to crawl almost all the way home at 100c. Going up a small hill it hit 120c again and the "temp high stop" warning appeared.
Stopped, let it cool for 10 mins and limped the last half mile home.
My basic knowledge suggested belt, had a look in engine bay and managed to pull out a scruffy looking piece of rubber 1.7m long !
Penny drops now, the belt runs the alternator, air con pump and more importantly the water pump.......
Access to the belt is from underneath and space between the engine and chassis must be about an inch and a half.
Threading the belt is fiddly and then to slacken off the tensioner you need a long 15mm spanner - who has such a tool ????
I managed to get one from Halfords that was just long enough to get leverage on it, 30 mins and it is back on and running ok.
Hopefully no lasting damage, although car is probably on its last legs now anyway !.
Heater blowing cold would be a major red flag since it suggests there is no coolant circulation which can lead to a lot of damage quickly. This may not trigger high temperature readings or overheating alarms since the sensors will not be seeing coolant flow any more.
If you got away without HGF I'd count yourself lucky.
If you got away without HGF I'd count yourself lucky.
GreenV8S said:
Heater blowing cold would be a major red flag since it suggests there is no coolant circulation which can lead to a lot of damage quickly. This may not trigger high temperature readings or overheating alarms since the sensors will not be seeing coolant flow any more.
If you got away without HGF I'd count yourself lucky.
Like GreenV8S said, if you don’t have HGF you’re very lucky. It seems your car was pleading with you to pull over. Hopefully that 10minutes cool down period saved you. You always want to keep an eye on your serpentine belts condition especially when it drives the water pump. If you got away without HGF I'd count yourself lucky.
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