Doing A Bit of Automotive Repair in Puyallup WA

Posted byPaola Nadeau on Nov 2020 in Automotive | 0 comments

If you are driving down the highway and you sense your car is losing power with each passing mile, you notice the temperature gauge start moving up the scale, the battery light starts blinking on and off and you have to push the accelerator more and more just to keep any kind of speed up, what is the problem. Well, a technician that works in automotive repair in Puyallup WA will tell you that your fan belt is shot.

The fan belt is one of those components on a car that can be checked by the owner and if found faulty it can be replaced by the owner as well. This is one of those simple jobs where automotive repair in Puyallup WA is really not required. The only things that are needed are a fan belt and a couple of tools. The fan belt of course is specific for your vehicle so make sure you give the parts counterman all the correct details about your car, the make, model and year and engine are all important so to make sure you get the correct belt.

To make the replacement without taking the car to an automotive repair in Puyallup WA repair shop it is best to do it when the engine is cool. The fan belt is easy to spot; it is in the front of the car between the radiator and the engine. The belt threads between three pulleys in a bit of a triangular pattern. Take the belt in your hand and pull it through a cycle, if it is too tight you have a problem, if it is loose you also have a problem. The belt needs a bit of play but not much. Look for any signs of wear, if you see any cracking or fraying the belt must be replaced and this is the time to do it, don’t wait until you’re on the road and it fails, it is much more expensive and time consuming.

Before you replace the belt take a good look at how the current one is installed, use your cell phone to take a digital picture that you can rely on when making the replacement. Of course this would not be necessary if you had the work done for you in an automotive repair in Puyallup WA. You may also find that the parts counterman can be of assistance, he may have a few tricks that he can pass on or perhaps if he’s not busy he can do the work for you.

The only mechanical work involved is to cut the old belt away, remove the large nut that holds the assembly in place, thread the new belt in and replace the nut.

If the fan belt is positioned in an awkward area or you want to make sure the job is really done right, it will be best to leave your car in the capable hands of the automotive repair at Apex Brake & Muffler they know what they are doing and they do it right the first time.