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Took the '65 vert out for Fathers Day Breakfast with the kids. On the way home I noticed a squeal from the engine bay. The faster the rpm, the louder it got. Sounded like the fan belt. After I got home I checked the fan belt, it seemed tight as it had been. I felt a little play in the fan assembly. I can slightly move the fan, is this normal to have a little play? Or should there be no play at all. I removed the belt and I can wiggle the fan, maybe a 1/16th of an inch. Could it be a incorrect belt?It has always had a squeal when first starting it, since I bought it. The belt looks fine, I think. Thoughts? Thx, Sully
no there should not be any movement of the fan, your play may be in the water pump shaft, bearing starting to go south. Is the movement limited to the fan or the fan and pulley.
I read your post about the squealing and took a quick look at your photos. On my 60 I have the same issue when my belt starts to get old and becomes glazed. If you look at the side photos of your belt, you can see the discoloration to the point where it appear a bit shiny. Even though my generator was tight and the belt was snug, I still got the squealing under moderate to heavy throttle pulls. First, I checked the generator pulley and it was too smooth to "bite" the inside of the belt and was causing the belt to slip, get over heated and glaze the rubber. I took a rat tail file and lightly roughed up the inside portion of the pulley and then replaced the belt.
All is good. Try that before spending time and $$ on a replacement fan clutch.
Sometimes these belts sit on the shelf a long time before you come along and buy it. The rubber can become stiff so make sure your the rubber on your replacement belt is still flexible.
I replaced the clutch fan, and tightened the belt. The fan no longer has a wobble. I also roughed up the belt before I reset it. No squeal upon starting, like it used to. It's still squealing upon acceleration. Update!
I would start the engine while cold from overnight with the belt removed. Only run it a few seconds without the water pump. This confirms the squeal is not elsewhere and only takes seconds.
Since you replaced the fan clutch, that leaves only the water pump, alternator, and the belt (assuming you don't have the SHP idler pulley, power steering, or AC compressor).
I would replace the belt (since it's cheap) next.
If it still squeals, then it's the water pump or alternator. I would probably use an automotive stethoscope (carefully) while the engine is running and revved up to the point of squealing, with the stethoscope probe as close as possible (and safely) to the alternator bearing and water pump bearing/shaft. When it starts squealing, the noise through the stethoscope will match the rise in volume proportionally.
Last edited by Easy Rhino; 06-20-2018 at 09:04 AM.
I would start the engine while cold from overnight with the belt removed. Only run it a few seconds without the water pump. This confirms the squeal is not elsewhere and only takes seconds.
Since you replaced the fan clutch, that leaves only the water pump, alternator, and the belt (assuming you don't have the SHP idler pulley, power steering, or AC compressor).
I would replace the belt (since it's cheap) next.
If it still squeals, then it's the water pump or alternator. I would probably use an automotive stethoscope (carefully) while the engine is running and revved up to the point of squealing, with the stethoscope probe as close as possible (and safely) to the alternator bearing and water pump bearing/shaft. When it starts squealing, the noise through the stethoscope will match the rise in volume proportionally.
I have a similar issue going on with my Camaro. Thanks for the idea of taking a belt off and starting the car in the morning. Great idea.
Ok, update. I started the cold car without the fan belt on. No Squeal. Great. Then I installed a new belt, No squeal. Test drive, not so good. Squeal got worse, engine started chugging, stalled out. Tried to nurse it home (1 mile). Half way home, I decided I should pull over, not wanting to further damage the motor. Towed it home and it sits ready for the AAA flatbed tomorrow. Internal issues I'm afraid. My local Club member suggested his engine builder look at it. Done for a few weeks I guess !*$^%&
Update all when I get the news. Sully
Summer in upstate NY is just getting going. Hope to enjoy some drive time soon
Try a slightly wider belt. I had the belt squeal issue on my 65 after adding vintage air. AC worked great, just couldn’t use it because the belt squealed so bad. Then it started to squeal without the AC even being turned on. I replaced the belt with the number called for, worked fine a few days then squealed again. Was just about to switch over to a serpentine belt drive system when I stopped at an AC place and had the guy check the system pressure, thinking maybe the compressor or clutch or something, but all good. He looked at the pulley then the belt and said, get yourself a wider belt, that belt is dropping too deep into the pulley and slipping causing your squeal. But it’s the proper belt for the system and he says he doesn’t care what the OEM folks say, it’s too narrow. So I go across the street to autozone, borrow a couple wrenches, pull off the belt and ask for a wider one that length. Put it on and NO MORE Squeal. Turns out V-belts come in a wide selection of width and depth and side angles. When I added the Borgeson PS last weekend, used the wider belt on that drive as well, and all is good and squeal free. When I compared the original belts to the wider belts, you can easily see the difference in width, plus the belt side angle was a little different, 36 degrees on the narrow belt and 38 degrees on the wider one. The wider belt fit the pulley groove much better, gripped better and was easier to tension and they stayed tight with no squeals. Belt was about $6. No more belt squeal, priceless. And I now have AC I can actually use. The AC guy was old school, felt the v-belt was just fine, frowned when I mentioned serpentine belt belt drive conversion, said it’s your money, do what you want, but why not try a wider v-belt first, 5 minutes and if that does work return the belt and go buy a serpentine drive system if you want. Being a fellow veteran he didn’t charge me a dime for his time or use of his AC machine to check the system, so I figured I’d follow his advise and yep, he was 100% correct. Need to buy him a cold drink.
Ok, update. I started the cold car without the fan belt on. No Squeal. Great. Then I installed a new belt, No squeal. Test drive, not so good. Squeal got worse, engine started chugging, stalled out. Tried to nurse it home (1 mile). Half way home, I decided I should pull over, not wanting to further damage the motor. Towed it home and it sits ready for the AAA flatbed tomorrow. Internal issues I'm afraid. My local Club member suggested his engine builder look at it. Done for a few weeks I guess !*$^%&
Update all when I get the news. Sully
Summer in upstate NY is just getting going. Hope to enjoy some drive time soon
Okay, that's very odd. But before tearing into the motor I would look into the ignition and fuel circuits. Something is not making sense.
Ok, update. I started the cold car without the fan belt on. No Squeal. Great. Then I installed a new belt, No squeal. Test drive, not so good. Squeal got worse, engine started chugging, stalled out. Tried to nurse it home (1 mile). Half way home, I decided I should pull over, not wanting to further damage the motor. Towed it home and it sits ready for the AAA flatbed tomorrow. Internal issues I'm afraid. My local Club member suggested his engine builder look at it. Done for a few weeks I guess !*$^%&
Update all when I get the news. Sully
Summer in upstate NY is just getting going. Hope to enjoy some drive time soon
This is very odd, and I hate to even say this, could the squeeling have been a lack of oil? I cant believe I even said that. Internal Issues?
06-18-2018, 06:36 AM
Father's Day squeel?
