mice under the bonnet

**wrightgj** · 26th December 2005, 19:20

Hi all,

I have a problem of 'mice' under my bonnet, in that when started from cold, the belt assembly seems to let out a shrill until the car is warmed up. (a squeaking)

Question is, can i just spray some of my wd40 on it, or will this result in a fireball 100 yards up the road?

cheers and happy new year
g

KC · 26th December 2005, 19:41

would not spray anything onto the belt, like WD40 apart from the fact it might go on fire, will destroy your belt in no time by the chemicals eating away at the rubber and plastic etc. Best bet is to go to a VH garage and ask them for a proper spray. Good luck.
KC

**TechWolf** · 26th December 2005, 19:49

Check the tension of the belt .... and if no fault there, get a new belt.
Spray is just a bad temporary solution!

**Ian** · 26th December 2005, 19:57

this was a rule of thumb a good RAC chap old me. twist the belt, it should not go further than 90deg, any more too slack, a lot less too tight.

I know that modern cars have auto tensioners but its good to check too make sure they are working.

**ed taylor** · 26th December 2005, 20:18

There is a spray called sparazon, it was used on machine belts to stop them slipping.[ it is like a sticky grease].
But i would NOT recomend spraying anything on the belt either, unless the noise is getting on your nerves and you are going to change the belt as soon as posible, or remidy the problem, as PTE says twist the belt 90degs,as there may be a tension fault. the tensioner spring may have become weak and not putting the required tension on the belt, the tensioner may need to be replaced.

**vectra 2.0 t** · 26th December 2005, 20:56

whata engine have you got??
if its the 2.0 t petrol it a bit of a common problem with the belt,best idea is to go to vx

**Duncan** · 27th December 2005, 00:00

As Paul (vectra 2.0T) said, it seems to be a common problem,on the 2.0T at least. It's likely to be the Multi-V belt tensioner. I had one replaced earlier this year, but it's going back in again in January as it's doing it again.

DON'T spray anything on it, just take it into Vx.

HTH

D

**organist** · 27th December 2005, 11:18

A lot of the GM 2.0 Litre engines suffer from this fault. I had a Daewoo Leganza 2.0 (same engine) which started with a small squeak and developed into a loud screech. This was just before the tensioner gave up altogether. This happened when Daewoo went bust in the UK and I took it to the local Vauxhall Garage and they fixed it for nothing as a goodwill gesture. Good service I thought. I then a few years later bought my 3.2 gsi from them.

**wrightgj** · 27th December 2005, 11:58

thanks guys.

I assume they tinkered with the belt/tensioner when they rebuilt the engine.
I'll just put up with it for now, until the next rebuild!!

its a 2.2 BTW

I'll try twisting the belt, so i've got a theory before taking into the garage.

cheers
g

**Robbieben** · 27th December 2005, 18:17

Chalk powder will stop belt screeching, and helps belts to grip, if you get a stick of kids chalk then hold against belt on inside while engine is running to coat belt, mind your fingers and loose clothing though, best to find a suitable area before starting engine, all belt squeeking is usually down to worn or badly adjusted belts so best answer is to check and remedy with correct action, above method is better than spraying the belt though.
Robbie