What is the trick to changing the serpentine belt?

[ArnieC]

Got into it a bit yesterday trying to change my serpentine belt, decided I didn't have the time or ambition to take half my rig apart to change the serpentine belt.

What is the hot trick to change the serpentine belt? Pull the fan and set it forward in the radiator? Pull the radiator/shroud/overflow? Go after it from underneath? Find someone with itty-bitty Trump hands?

 

[cruiser100]

Pull the fan and remove the shroud. With the belt still on the nuts holding the fan on should loosen easily.

I promise this will make the job so much faster and significantly easier.

 

[ArnieC]

Looks like the shroud is one piece and has some hoses and such clipped to it. Does it just lift out with the fan once those clips are undone?

 

[Hoosier Daddy]

I changed mine from underneath. Quick and easy, aside from the annoyance of pulling the splash plate.

 

[bloc]

Find a good pic of the tensioner off the truck. If it’s OEM there is a hole and a catch that when the tensioner is pulled back you can stick a drill bit into and hold it there.

This allows you to drape the belt over all of the relevant pulleys when loose, vs having to pick one to have the belt beside and hold there while you compress the tensioner again to finalize the job.

My hands aren’t small and I was able to do the job from the top with no assembly this way. I do remember using a long screwdriver to help push the belt around where it needed to be.

 

[ArnieC]

Thats my preference - I will see if I can jam the tensioner up with a drill bit. Hate disassembling things that the factory did since they are gonna do it better.

Thanks for the help.