Anybody know what kind of a job it is to change these belts that go under and over all them pulleys on these foreign jobs. 5 years and 53,000 miles on the wifes Acura and the belt squeals upon start up in cold weather. Honda dealer said time for a new one- $175.00.  175?? Come on it's only the wifes car!

If you are talking about the accessory drive belt it is not bad. There should actually be a diagram under the hood to illustrate the correct routing. If you are talking about the timing belt(probably not considering you said 175 dollars) that is a different story. Definitely requires patience and skill.

Scott

[QUOTE=ranger3]If you are talking about the accessory drive belt it is not bad. There should actually be a diagram under the hood to illustrate the correct routing. If you are talking about the timing belt(probably not considering you said 175 dollars) that is a different story. Definitely requires patience and skill.

Scott
[/QUOTE]
Thanks Scott, Yup, it's  that long belt on the outside. On the passenger side, they like to put motors in sideways these days. I should price one out at the parts store, it looks like it could be about 5 ft long.

They can be a tight fit to get your hands in there to run the belt over all of the pulleys, but a little patience will work wonders!
As Scott says, there is usually a pictogram under the hood that shows the belt routing. I've found it easiest to run the belt around the largest pulley last...it's easier than trying to flip it over one with a small diameter.
There should be an automatic belt tensioner, too. You'll need a wrench/breaker bar to take the tension off of the belt to remove it.
hth

Does it squeal ALL the time or only when the A/C is on?  I hear a squeal on my Acura, that sounds like a belt squeal, that only happen when the A/C compressor kicks in. Adam Wartell2008-03-28 05:59:54

If I recall back when I did my wife's Malibu, I also had to unbolt the passenger side motor mount and jack the motor up a little to get the belt past the mount.

[QUOTE=Adam Wartell] Does it squeal ALL the time or only when the A/C is on?  I hear a squeal on my Acura, that sounds like a belt squeal, that only happen when the A/C compressor kicks in. [/QUOTE]

Just bought it in Jan. used. Only doe's it on the first start up on cold mornings like below 20. Came from Long Island, NY, probably ain't used to the crappy winter weather up here that just won't go away.  Wife loves it, she never had a SUV before.