Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Troubleshooting help/comments about serpentine replacement- HOWTO

I bought the serpentine belt, the water pump belt, and the 3/8 breaker bar. Read all the posts regarding the serpentine belt replacement. Still kind of nervous about messing up.

My car: 98.5 Mystique LS 2.5l auto.

Some people have suggested getting the breaker bar from the top without taking the wheel off while others have worked from the bottom.

Any comments, suggestions? Hanes Manual for the water pump belt replacement made it sound like a snap. But the sepentine belt for the engine still seems like a bit of work with the tight spacing.

There is no way that I could change the serpentine belt from the top of the engine for my Contour. There are too many things in the way. If you can do it for your 'Tour, then more power to you. Try it from the top first, it can't hurt.

Here is how I did it:

- remove the splash shield from the front right fender
- jack up the front right of the car and put it on a jackstand
- remove the front right tire
- insert a breaker bar or similar tool (I used a Sears 3/8"-drive flex handlepart part # VVQ 44363) into the tensioner pulley from the bottom of the car
- rotate the flex handle clockwise to loosen the tension on the belt (this is opposite the way you would normally loosen a regular bolt)(FYI: I actually tried to loosen the tensioner counter-clockwise for about five minutes once and wondered why it wasn't budging!)
- while the tensioner is loose, pull off the old belt (you might need an assistant for this part)
- release the tension that you were applying to the flex handle
- at this point you might want to compare the two belts and make sure that they are about the same length (the old one might have stretched a little)
- you might also want to check each of the pulleys and make sure that they are on tight and that the idler pulley and tensioner pulley spin properly (they have been known to have broken bearings)
- install the new belt on all of the pulleys but one (I choose the A/C pulley since it is easy to access from the wheel well)(FYI: if you forget how to route the belt on all of the pulleys, there is a diagram under the hood on the wheel mount)
- once again rotate the flex handle clockwise to loosen the tension on the belt
- install the new belt on the last pulley (you might need an assistant for this part also)
- remove the flex handle (this is VERY important!)
- check that the belt is properly installed and seated on all pulleys
- start the engine and make sure that the belt is seated properly
- install the tire
- lower the car
- install the splash shield

I did this from memory, so hopefully I got it all.

The hardest part is getting the breaker bar into the slot. I had to buy three different tools before I could get one that would fit with the limited space available.

Oh, and by the way, the water pump belt is a piece of cake to replace. Once you take the front plastic cover off (three bolts), you can release the tension of the belt with your hand.

I changed mine from the top. I couldn't get a breaker bar in the tensioner so I just wedged a long screwdriver in the tensioner and torqued down on that. Putting it back on is mildly annoying, but IMO it beats having to jack up the car, remove the wheel, the splashshield, etc.

Start with wp belt first it's a snap (Oops - poor choice of words ). Remove 3 bolts holding plastic shield. Remove shield, you'll have to rotate it to release the hose going to intake at top right. Tension can be released by grasping tensioner and moving inwards allowing belt to be moved off pulleys. Reverse process for installation. Watch fingers don't get trapped under belt when removing or installing.

Serpentine belt essentially same process except stiffer tension and you need leverage to release it. Trick from above is to get an appropriately sized (depth) 3/8 drive securely into square hole in tensioner giving you the leverage to rotate it clockwise. Ensure you are familiar with routing as per underhood sticker. Release tension on belt, remove belt then slowly allow tensioner to move to relaxed position. See post above for details of install process. Again watch fingers don't get pinched and don't loose your cool.

There is absolutely no reason you can't change that from the top. There's a tensioner wrench you can buy at Sears or any auto parts dealer (Like MAC Tools or Snap-on tools). Basically, it's a long thin metal rod that you can attach a special socket onto, and it's made just for belt tensioners. It's only $40, and IMHO, it's worth it. I ended up stripping the bolt on the tensioner because I tried to get at it by removing the wheel, and the splash shield, etc., and it cost me $24 for a new one, and that was at my brother's parts discount! Normally these are $70 at the dealer because no one makes an aftermarket part.

My advice? Don't risk chewing up the tensioner, and buy a tensioner wrench; but if you see that the tensioner is hosed, let me know and I'll see if I can get you a new tensioner for under $30.

I did mine from the top. A bit of a PITA, but I'd do it that way again as opposed to removing the wheel, etc. With a proper breaker bar (ie. one that is thin enough to fit between the fender well and tensioner), it's really not that bad.

I agree with Viss1. Had no problem getting a 3/8 breaker bar in from the top; actually had the bar handle forward of the tensioner for both removing and replacing. I stuck a screwdriver into the hole on the breaker bar handle for a little extra leverage when replacing- worked great. The hardest part was getting the new belt down thru the space between the pulleys and the fender.
My motto: Replace early, in the cool of your garage. Carry the OLD one for a spare.

I found a product called "socket caps" @ Sears. Basically a square drive with a hex head. Designed to turn sockets with a wrench in tight areas. Used the 3/8 socket cap in the tensioner hole, the correct size wrench, and a piece of pipe over the wrench as a cheater bar. Worked great. There was no way I could get a breaker bar in there. The Craftsman socket caps, come in a set of three (1/4,3/8,1/2). Can't remember the price, but was worth it and may come in handy for other tight spaces.

v6 has square 3/8" hole to relieve tension, not a hex bolt.

Most breaker bars have joint which increases depth, often a ratchet is thinner, but unfortunately shorter.

They're ~$10. Well worth it.