mlopezart

My car is a 99 5.7L Camaro,

So I replaced the alternator and now its squealing like pigs at a slaughterhouse. I removed the belt and the squealing's goes away. This was a reman alt but was in great almost perfect condition. As soon as I start the car it chirps at random intervals, then I start driving and goes louder and faster intervals until it's one big long squeal. Its just horrible!

Alternator the culprit?:
- bad bearings or other inner parts?
- bad pulley or incorrect size pulley for my belt?
- overcharging or overworking, or moving at a different speed than everything else?

Other pulleys the culprit?:
-a/c belt pulleys are fine, so is the belt
-water pump pulley bad?
-power steering pulley bad? Fluid was dark when I bought the car but after flushing it it's been fine

The Main belt is a Dayco 5060790 serp belt bought at Autozone and is the right size for my car. My friend told me it might be the wrong size belt, mainly that it's too wide for the pulleys, that's causing the racket. I'll go try finding another belt that's less wide but I really don't think that's it. I also sprayed it to lubricate the belt but no dice. Any suggestions?

rod442

remove the belt and spin the alternator pully by hand; if thats the culprit you should still be able to hear it. Engine OFF, of course.

As for the Alt pully - # of ribs and size; you should have compared that to the original. Same for the belt. With the new one being slightly smaller due to stretch.

Then spin the rest of the pullies to listen for anything else making noise. (obviously the crank pully you cant spin by hand).

And yes, the new alternator could be junk. bearings, bad assembly, etc.

Chevyssoccer

Dont spray anything on the belts. It is fairly common for the belts on LS cars to squeak. I dont know what the deal is. After you check the alternator clean all pulleys and tensioners with soap and water. I only use gatorback belts because every other brand I have tried would squeak usually in the morning when things were cool and humid. there is also a sticky at the top for repacking the tensioner bearings. Thats probly not your problem but I would still recomend it if the tensioners have never been replaced.

mlopezart

The number of ribs (6) is for the belts---didn't check the alt pulley ribs so I'll do that. I measured both belts (new and old) before placing the new on and were the same size/width. Man I hope its not the alternator.

Chevysoccer, that's happening to me. Every morning it's so embarrassing with the constant squeal. After driving it a few miles the sound is completely gone, unfortunately everyone at my apartment thinks I don't maintain my car!

I went and bought a Gatorback 4060790---tough to find and a bit expensive--- but hopefully that'll do the quick fix. I'll start hand-turning pulleys tonight too and let you guys know if I find anything.

Those Gatorback belts are hilarious, they simply sliced even intervals at an angle all along the belt to mimmick an old belt. It's definitely a lot more flexible than V-shaped ones!

Marc 85Z28

With the car running, briefly spray some WD-40 (or similar spray lube, but not belt dressing) on both sides of the belt. Don't saturate it, just a quick 1-2 second shot should do. If the noise disappears temporarily, you need to replace the belt and check for a weak belt tensioner. If the noise remains, you have a pulley issue.

mlopezart

I started it up this morning and squeaking started, progressing as I warmed it up and test drove it---this was the same Autozone Dayco belt. Just wanted to make sure if by praying it would fix it---it didn't. I removed it and checked the ribs of pulley of the alt, is was 6, so were all the belts I had for testing (Autozone's Dayco, Gatorback, and Pepboys whatever brand.) All belts measure the same, give or take a few mm. I hand-turned all the pulleys and checked for any looseness but all was well. I placed the Gatorback (that thing is ugly) and like magic the squeal disappeared. I test drove it for a good 10 minutes and all was whisper quiet (the belt, not the badass LS1 ) I'll see if tomorrow morning while its cold it will be quiet as well.

WD40 is not good because it mixes with the grease of the bearings, causing it to get even worse in a short time. And the rubber should not be sprayed with it either, it will cut its time to half or less, or could even slip off! Not all pulleys have ribs. That stuff is good for door hinges and things, not vital engine parts!

thanks for the help, wish me luck

Marc 85Z28

I said don't saturate it. Quickly spraying some lube on the belt to diagnose a noise won't hurt a thing. It's been done that way for 70+ years.

mlopezart

I didn't catch the "don't saturate" part. Thanks, I"ll keep you posted.

mlopezart

well, it's getting worse each day I drive this thing. Aaarrgh---talk about annoying. Also the tensioner arm is now on mark 2 3/4 (the belt must have stretched since I last put it). It's nowhere as bad as the Dayco belt, but it is starting to come back and I swear I"m gonna freak out if this continues. I've spun every pulley and I don't hear any squeaks OR grinding. Here is what I've experienced with this problem since I bought the car:

1. Bought it. Squeaky as hell. Changed the belt to a Dayco. Squeaks GONE.
2. Alternator was bad. Changed it. Squeaky!!
3. Returned the Dayco belt, got a Gatorback. Squeaks gone!
4. Now 4-5 days later, squeaks are coming back!! Today it's up to a chirp chirp chirp, faster chirps during acceleration!

The alignment of the alternator is straight, but maybe it's slightly off?? How do I check for alignment of this---or any other pulley for that matter? Is the alt pulley bad even if it doesn't make noise when hand-turned? How do I know if the tensioner is bad? Aaaarghhh!!

Oh and I did the oil thing...it is a pulley. But which one is the million dollar question.

Chevyssoccer

Did you do this, or read the sticky?
you could also try putting a wrench on the tensioner while the car is running (if it makes noise at idle) to add a little tension and see if it changes anything. It could also be the a/c compressor belt. I know some people spray belt dressing, wd40...or wwhatever on them but I believe it just temporarily quiets it down and still slips so the problem returns.
What I would do is
1) clean pulleys and belts with soap and water and let dry, its easier to take them both off to do this well.
2) read the sticky, do it. It only takes a few minutes and greatly reduces the amount of drag the pulleys put on the belt. https://www.camaroz28.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=461523

Still a problem, look at the ballancer maybe its really rusted, or the water pump hub is slipping.

mlopezart

I guess my question is how is it that it started making squeals right after the new alternator was put in? Shouldn't that tell me that it is definitely the alternator?

mlopezart

So I washed them. Haven't followed the sticky but will this Saturday if the noise continues. Keep you posted..

mlopezart

Alright, I replaced the alternator and the noise was GONE!!! Freakin piece of junk. Hand-turning pulleys doesn't work----I did this constantly to the alternator and it made no noise at all everytime. Maybe I'll create a method that I can do to turn them faster, maybe hand-turning was to slow to create the squeal. OR it might have been the alternator itself, not the pulley, not able to pull the weight. NEVER go to Autozone for alternators. I did wash all the pulleys, the belt, and checked and rechecked them. I always had the hunch it'd be the alt. In case you're wondering, i now have a Bosch alt. Thanks for the help! Time to go cruisin' by the beach!