Posted on 3/12/2023
There's a belt that snakes through your engine. It's even named for a snake, the serpentine belt. It'll bite you when it breaks, possibly leaving you stranded. So, it's good to know a little about this snake-like belt. In early engines, there were lots of belts. They were used to convert the rotating power of the engine to turn a mechanical part. But engineers had an idea. Why not consolidate all those belts into one that ran a bunch of different parts simultaneously? Voila! The serpentine belt. It's found in the front or side of your engine unlike older belts which were often in a V shape, the serpentine belt has ribs on it which more effectively connect with the pulleys that power the other components. A serpentine belt may power the water pump, power steering pump, alternator, and the air conditioning: all from one crankshaft. Now, all that's fine when everything is working well and the belt is intact. But when a serpentine belt ... read more