Sunday, April 8, 2012

Maintaining Your Vehicle-Drive Belts

By Glenn Matthews


The function of belts in an automobile is to connect and drive two shafts to the motion of a rotary. This is done by using a series of pulleys. The motion of the rotary is where or how the engine gets its power to various accessories that are mounted to the engine. These accessories are vital to the operation of the vehicle like pumps, exhaust fans and air compressors.

Identifying different belts:

The belts used to provide high-traction type power and fits into a groove shaped like a Vee are called V-belts. Another belt that provides high-traction power is the Poly-V belt. This belt is flat on the outside but has many Vee-shaped grooves on the inside. The V-Link belt is similar to the above V-belts, but is open-ended and does not need meal clamps. Using a V-Link is a last resort for when other belts will not reach or fit as they are quite costly and will only carry a small load.

Belts that are lighter in weight and can function at high speeds are called Flat belts. There is little traction with these belts so they do tend to slip. One of the most important type of belts is the Timing belt which does not need friction and does not have teeth like other drive belts. They have a small capacity for power compared to the other types of belts.

The function of drive belts:

The purpose of drive belts is to drive a variety of external parts of the engine. Even though these belts are very inexpensive, they have the ability to put a stop to a functioning vehicle if they break. In simple terms, if there is no belt to drive a part of the engine, that part will no longer function. One of the many accessories to rely on a drive belt is the water pump. The water pump is designed to circulates water through the vehicle's system, thus keeping it cool. If the water pump stops working, which happens instantly when the drive belt breaks, it takes only a short time for the engine to overheat. Although a broken drive belt is a large problem, a broken serpentine belt can be an even larger one. The serpentine belt drives multiple components at once, so if this belt breaks then multiple functions are compromised.

What makes drive belts break?

These belts are made of rubber and are not very expensive. Wear and tear is a normal part of use. Over time the rubber of the drive belt may harden, dry out, or even crack. This compromises the strength of the belt and causes it to break.

Are drive belts easy to replace?

In some cases, a basic understanding on the engine and its peripheral components is all that is needed to replace a drive belt. Serpentine belts, however, are more complicated. It may be best to let a mechanic replace these. Most professional mechanics recommend that the serpentine belt be changed every thirty-five thousand miles. These belts can last up to sixty thousand miles as can the timing belts.




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