Fanbelt change on W202 1995 C280?

[david_h]

I have nice squeally fan belt this week meaning either

1.) fan belt needs changing
OR
2.) it needs tightening.

So my question is:-

Where is the adjuster for fan belt on W202 or is it self-adjusting?

If no adjuster, means I have to change whole fan belt, is this a mission? do I have to take whole front of car off i.e. bumper, lights, fans etc.

May attempt this tomorrow or Saturday, if not I'm going to get someone else to do it.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Will]

IIRC the fan belt is self tensioned, via a sprung tensioner. If it's noisy, check to see if the belt is damaged and/or whether it is being correctly tensioned.

New belts are cheap and easy to fit, when you know how to do them. I think you will need to put a socket onto the tensioner to relieve the belt, then carefully remove it passing it over the various pulleys and the viscous fan. The most important part is remembering the routing and making sure it goes back on properly.

A MB mechanic could probably change one in 60 seconds - for us less experienced, allow 20 minutes including a little swearing and blinding as you scuff your knuckles and cant work out how it goes back!

Good luck,

Will

 

[david_h]

IIRC the fan belt is self tensioned, via a sprung tensioner. If it's noisy, check to see if the belt is damaged and/or whether it is being correctly tensioned.

New belts are cheap and easy to fit, when you know how to do them. I think you will need to put a socket onto the tensioner to relieve the belt, then carefully remove it passing it over the various pulleys and the viscous fan. The most important part is remembering the routing and making sure it goes back on properly.

A MB mechanic could probably change one in 60 seconds - for us less experienced, allow 20 minutes including a little swearing and blinding as you scuff your knuckles and cant work out how it goes back!

Good luck,

Will

20minutes, damn thats 100times easier than I thought it was going to be.

Thanks for the heads up, I'll get my mechanic mate to fit it.

 

[AlexR]

If you're replacing the belt, I can't recall the price of the tensioner, but it may be wise to do that at the same time?...

 

[silverarrow]

make sure you get the correct length
do not measure the old on because they s-t-r-e-t-c-h

 

[Jamesie]

I've got a squeally fanbelt on a 1995 C180 W202. A new fanbelt can be purchased from Halfords for £19.58; how much can I expect to have this fitted by an independent garage?

 

[grober]

As above on previous posts the belt is automatically tensioned so should not slip. More likely to be the tensioner pulley wheel bearing or possibly the water pump? Time for a belt change say 1/2 an hour ---assuming that's the problem? When buying a new one be aware there are 2 lengths one for cars with aircon (extra pulley=longer length) and one without aircon.

edit:- the alternator will give a squealing noise after the car is first started from cold while it's under load charging up the battery- this is more marked in cold weather or if the battery is on the way out and not holding charge-----its not this you are hearing is it---its not a continuous sound, only lasts for a short time after starting.

 

[Jamesie]

edit:- the alternator will give a squealing noise after the car is first started from cold while it's under load charging up the battery- this is more marked in cold weather or if the battery is on the way out and not holding charge-----its not this you are hearing is it---its not a continuous sound, only lasts for a short time after starting.

Thank you thank you thank you - that is EXACTLY what the problem is. I stupidly managed to leave the interior light on the other day and ended up in the perilous situation where I couldn't get the doors open and thankfully managed to get the boot open and a jump start. This noise has only just started happening since the battery was near flat. No doubt it will disappear shortly. Fantastic stuff - cheers! :bannana:

 

[vijilants]

I replaced the belts on my W202 - they really are the easiest belts I have ever replaced and take no time al all. As Will says, no more than 20 min.

 

[JumboBeef]

Before doing anything, spray it will WD40: it might just be damp!

 

[Jamesie]

Thanks for the comments. Went out again tonight and the noise was still there but only for about the first 30 seconds this time, and that was even with it being a very damp evening here.

Been out for a drive tonight for a good hour or so and hopefully the noise will be away next time out. I guess it will take a fair bit driving to get the battery back up to full charge though given it was near enough empty.