Belt/Pulley Noises
 

So about a week ago I replaced my power steering pump after it died all over my driveway. I pulled off the a/c compressor and set it aside, I removed the Jockey pulley from the ancillary bracket and then removed the pull from the p/s pump. Put it all back together. Everything sounded fine at that time.

I drove one trip in it, and after failing to reinstall the fan shroud cut a hole in the top radiator hose. So I replaced the hose and rinsed off the coolant I could see. About a week later of daily driving and I'm still having a belt noise/squeal. Ive never had this before so I'm starting to wonder if I may have messed up something during the p/s pump replacement. It's hard for me to explain, but its not a constant squeal like a bearing. Its more like a constant intermittent noise like a squeeky shopping cart wheel. It does increase with RPM and after the truck is really warm seems to go away.

Does anyone have any ideas or tips I could look into?

Sounds like coolant or PS fluid got on the belt and/or pulleys. Just went through this with an Audi A7.

I would start here > Either REPLACE the Belt or REMOVE the Belt (don't just clean it in place) and spray it with Simple Green. Use a brush (toothbrush will work great) and scrub BOTH sides of the belt...then rinse well with water.

Also clean/wipe ALL pulleys first with Simple Green and then wipe them with a clean wet rag. When dry, wipe them down with rubbing alcohol. Try it at least this can be an easy solution.
Or, if you can post a video of said squeak and we can hear what's going on.
Good Luck!:cheers:

Ok, I was thinking maybe I jacked up a pulley when I re-installed everything. I didn't realize that coolant would stick around or cause problems like this. I'll grab a video in the morning just to be sure.

Check your power steering pulley for horizontal movement. Grip the pulley and see if you can pull it forward and or push it backwards on the shaft.

I had a similar noise after replacing a power steering pump with a reman unit - turned out to be shaft bearing failure.

Turns out the power steering pump was not the culprit behind the noise it was actually the belt squeaking due to misalignment from the power steering pump pulley walking on the shaft. I removed the power steering pump and replace it with a better known more expensive remanufactured unit, problem solved.

I am assuming that the squeak is while the truck is parked and not moving. I would spray lubricant on each pulley bearing one at a time until you hit the jockpot. And if you hear the squeak while driving, then its different.
Well, happy thanksgiving to you all!

I believe it still happens while driving. I’ve noticed it at drive through windows.

I attached a short video clip. In the video it sounds like a tick but in real life it’s definitely more of a squeak.

I’ll pull the belt off and clean it and the pulleys today.

Yep, sounds like something on the belt. It's hard to tell from the vid, but you can hear the noise track as the belt rotates.

Before you remove the belt to clean it do a quick test with a CLEAN squirt bottle and some WATER. While the truck is running give the belt a LITE squirt with water ( like 1 trigger pull ) and see if the noise stops. Be sure the water gets on both sides of the belt ( just aim it at any pulley).

Normally the noise will stop and then come back in a few seconds, but you will know you are on the right track. Then remove the belt and clean it, or replace it with a Gates Brand.

So I cleaned the belt and pulleys as described. I think it helped but I still hear the squeal especially on cold mornings. I can live with it at this point.

However I noticed one thing that raised some concern with me. I tested all the pulleys for any wiggle/play and they all seemed fine. When I gave them a spin without the belt I noticed the A/C compressor pulley had a slight noise like a bearing was wearing out. Also while cleaning the pulleys, I got impatient for them to dry and took the leaf blower to the engine bay (neighbors must have thought I was crazy). When I hit the A/C compressor powdery dust went everywhere. So I I should probably watch the compressor, but how difficult is it to change that pulley? I've never done anything more than remove the compressor bolts and set it aside in the engine bay.

https://cimg8.ibsrv.net/gimg/landrov...622107c065.png

It's not hard to remove the AC pulley and you can leave the compressor in place. So you don't need to evac the refrigerant, but you will need a way to secure the pulley from moving. An air impact wrench and a strap wrench are your best friends. But the impact wrench is really not needed once the pulley is secure. A breaker bar or decent size ratchet can get it done.

Parts: You can get just the install bits and the bearing($17.99) from AZ :pointup::)
Pulley Kit > https://acclutches.com/land-rover-di...2002-2003-a-c/

Hi Robert,
Try this CAREFULLY