Pretty much I got my 60k service done awhile back and I also had the gates serpentine belt installed. Slowly after that I developed an engine squeal when the engine was cold, it didn't matter if it was hot or cold outside but once the engine reachea operating temp it goes away completely. The noise does get louder as the rpms increase. Well I ended up changing the belt and the noise went away for about 2 months then I pressure washed my engine and it's back again. This time around I tried to see if belt dressing would quiet it down and it got louder but still goes away when the engine reaches operating temp. Is it possible the new belt got contaminated from washing the engine? Or does it sound like a tensioner or pulley problem?

 

Check you tensioner bearing-spray it with some wd40 and see what happens. Same with Alt bearing. You have something that lost lube-- hitting it with the power washer strips any reamining lube--yeah, yeah,--- sealed bearing but it happens far too often just as you have described.

 

Ok kool ill try that and see if anything changes.

 

If putting a new belt on it fixed it, at least last time it was the belt. Odds are it is again.

FWIW, Gates belts squeak on start up and when cold etc after a few thousand miles at most. I throw them away on a weekly basis. If the replacement was Gates, try something different.

 

I had a gates blue belt it didn't last a week before making noise then this time I said eff it and bought an advance auto dayco and it lasted a few months. Looks like I need an oem belt but damn they are expensive.

 

Probably so. Watch your tensioner while it is running and see if it jumps around a lot. It should move but still be relatively stable, a mm or two movements etc... not huge jumps. If you have a stethoscope you can listen to it too, it will clatter much louder than normal if it is moving too much (though you would need a basis for comparison in your case).
Make sure all of your pulleys are properly lined up, and if all checks out between the pulleys and the tensioner, put a better quality belt on there.

 

I had a similar issue with a gates belt. It was a fraction off in size. It was rubbing every so slightly just enough to make some noise.. I replaced the belt and noise went away.

 

I wish I still had my oem belt to compare. A good friend of mine thinks it is either the tensioner or the idler.

 

Just inspect the tensioner like I described. You can check the idler but you need to remove it. With it off the engine hold the center between your thumb and index finger (you may need something to assist you if you have small hands) and spin the bearing. It should spin 1-3 times roughly and be silent. If it has any amount of noise or if it continues to spin multiple times (5+) the bearing is bad and needs replacement.

For what it is worth.... the bearings never fail in this capacity... they are either an always fail/always good or always fail with AC on etc, or they make god awful noises on top of that. The tensioner is a possibility, I can tell you having worked on hundreds of these into the four digit range, I can probably count on my fingers how many tensioner I've seen go bad in a capacity to squeak (usually they tick).

And again, if a new belt is fixing the problem, it isn't the tensioner or the idler bearing; if the tensioner doesn't put enough stress on it, the belt will make noise. The 1mm that the belt may have stretched isn't making the difference. If you don't see anything unusual on the inspections outlined before and just now, put a new belt on and see.... even get a cheap one (look around you can find them for ~$5 if you try) and see if the noise goes away. If it does, you know where you are at. If it doesn't, then you can put your more expensive belt back on

 

Thanks for the responses. I'm gonna take a look at it on sunday and see what I come up with.

 

 

i had a gates accessory belt that did the same thing; it's simply too tight.