Serpentine belt replace. How bad is it DIY

[777 Driver]

Originally Posted by Dave Wilkes

Lost the s belt on our 2008 Endeavor coming home from a remote location.
Diverted to a small town where I should be able to get the belt. How bad is it to change? I’ve got lots of experience but limited tools and I am getting up in age.
Suggestions?

Thanks
Dave

Hi Dave,

I owned a 2009 Monaco Diplomat with the ISL400 and rear radiator. I believe that very similar to yours.

I heeded to have the air conditioning compressor replaced which required removing an replacing the serpentine belt. I had that done at a small truck repair place in rural Montana that was quite familiar with trucks; not so much a rear radiator DP.

After the repair was complete, I had a conversation with the mechanic who had done the repair. He didn't have much good to say about the process. It did take two mechanics with one working from the top (bedroom) and one from the bottom. I got the sense that they had struggled with getting the belt into place because some of the routing was farther down than the top man could reach and farther up than the bottom man could reach and that they had used some "special words" during the process.

Ditto on Myron's closet door and carpet removal. I did that myself before I turned the project over to the mechanics. You can likely do that yourself and save shop time ($'s) and probably do it with more care than your average diesel mechanic.

My take away from that was that I certainly wouldn't have been able to do that by myself.

Good luck with your challenge.

Take care,
Stu

[Old Scout]

….not all rear radiators are equal....but most owners say that lack of access is the issue....most of us are getting beyond the time when crawling under/over an engine is still doable. I am curious as to how you were able to "limp" into town without the serpentine belt--with no alternator, water pump, AC compressor, radiator fan, etc????? Hope the local shop folks can help you....

[R.Wold]

Originally Posted by Old Scout

….not all rear radiators are equal....but most owners say that lack of access is the issue....most of us are getting beyond the time when crawling under/over an engine is still doable. I am curious as to how you were able to "limp" into town without the serpentine belt--with no alternator, water pump, AC compressor, radiator fan, etc????? Hope the local shop folks can help you....

I wondered that too. The guy in the dodge truck (with large Lance Cab-over) “limped” into the CG with a broken belt (from how far I don’t know) and then let it idle for around 10 minutes while he registered, fearing that it might not start if he shut it down.

The water pump and belt replacement got him back on the road but I worried about more serious damage. I later received a letter from them and they made it to BC (from Wyoming where I found them) and then home to Texas traveling for six weeks after the incident. I wouldn’t do what he did, but it speaks for how tough these Cummins motors are.

[PeteandDeb]

I'd suggest you make sure it was just wear that did the belt in. On my 08 Diplomat with the 400 ISL, the belt was executed by the a/c compressor seizing.

[153stars]

Mentioned briefly already check for a reason it broke locked or wobbly tensioner, idler compressor ect. Even seen stone bounce up stick and kill a serp belt.

[Dave Wilkes]

200 miles in 9 hours.
Tied both sets of batteries together with booster cables
Ran the generator continuously
Got speed up to between 50 and 60 mph
Shut off engine after reaching speed
Never let it get to the Hot
Shift to neutral
Hang on to the steering wheel for all your worth without power steering
Coast for as little as 1/2 mile to as much as 3
Wait till the gauge drops back to half

Repeat

There were no vehicles, nothing but Rain and mud. I didn’t want to do it but I figured the tow bill would be in the thousands plus they would have to send a flat bed from Alberta.

It seems to have worked out. I’m booked for Tuesday for the belt. Trying to identify the Freightliner vin to order a rad while I’m here (slow leak)

Now about tires, just got a quote for Michelin’s at $706 Canadian each Seems very high

Thanks all

[tommar]

Originally Posted by Dave Wilkes

200 miles in 9 hours.
Tied both sets of batteries together with booster cables
Ran the generator continuously
Got speed up to between 50 and 60 mph
Shut off engine after reaching speed
Never let it get to the Hot
Shift to neutral
Hang on to the steering wheel for all your worth without power steering
Coast for as little as 1/2 mile to as much as 3
Wait till the gauge drops back to half

Repeat

There were no vehicles, nothing but Rain and mud. I didn’t want to do it but I figured the tow bill would be in the thousands plus they would have to send a flat bed from Alberta.

It seems to have worked out. I’m booked for Tuesday for the belt. Trying to identify the Freightliner vin to order a rad while I’m here (slow leak)

Now about tires, just got a quote for Michelin’s at $706 Canadian each Seems very high

Thanks all

JEEZ! Hope that never happens to me! Like a Friday The 13th movie! Tires: Michelins are too rich for me, even down here in the U.S. So I bought Samson tires, Chinese. That was 3.7 years ago and they've been fine so far. Research told me that a lot of 18 wheel truckers use them. I'm satisfied.

[RobRoy]

FYI I have never ever seen a serpintine belt just fail ...their was always some other pending Issue being the cause of it ie: bearing failure in the tensioner , idler, alternator and the likes of.

I have been involved in the replacement of hundreds if not over a thousand serpintine belt replacements and never seen a serp belt just fail .... not saying it cant happen ... I myself just have never seen it....and the purpose of telling you this is so that you dont have to go thu this aggervation more than once.

Look very closely at all the accessories that belt drives

Good luck in your journey

Happy Trails

[R.Wold]

Originally Posted by RobRoy

FYI I have never ever seen a serpintine belt just fail ...their was always some other pending Issue being the cause of it ie: bearing failure in the tensioner , idler, alternator and the likes of.

I have been involved in the replacement of hundreds if not over a thousand serpintine belt replacements and never seen a serp belt just fail .... not saying it cant happen ... I myself just have never seen it....and the purpose of telling you this is so that you dont have to go thu this aggervation more than once.

Look very closely at all the accessories that belt drives

Good luck in your journey

Happy Trails

The last one I replaced was caused by a failed water pump. But I had one on my first power stroke diesel (1995) begin failing by losing the outer edge which flailed around shredding the sound deadening under the hood. Over several months it lost more and more of the edge and I kept trimming it until I felt I got my money’s worth out of it and replaced it. But it was still functioning fine when I replaced it. It was just about 1/4” narrower than when new. The replacement still looked perfect when I sold the truck about 100,000 miles later.

[jacwjames]

If the belt had never been changed before it may have just failed, time does eventually catch up. Climate may play a roll, salt and dirt can play havoc on stuff. Also, if coach sat a while the pulley's will rust up, which doesn't help.

That being said I would check the idler pulley and the water pump, and if the AC compressor is driven from this belt check it.

I was stranded for almost 2 days in E TN during memorial day weekend. Radiator failed, luckily we found it when we pulled into a Cracker Barrel, antifreeze running everywhere. Finally got a tow to the nearest Cummins shop, luckily within the allowed distance. So I can feel your pain.

You've got bigger ba@#'s then me to drive it that far without a belt.



When I was working ~30 years ago and had an underground loader damaged I road on top with buckets of H2O to keep water in the system, but we didn't know how long it would take to get to the shop.

[winniman]

I have a different engine than you most likely, but we changed my radiator a while back. While we had it out, we changed the water pump, idler pully, and serpentine belt. Getting the belt around the fan pully with the shroud in place would be difficult with the limited access most rvs have. Not probably what you want to hear, but it might be a good time to have the rad removed for easier access to the engine. As stated by others, there could well be something else wrong to have caused the belt to break. While you have the rad out, have it cleaned and inspected as well as the CAC. Im not saying it cant be done, but Im guessing mine would have been very difficult with the rad, CAC, and fan shroud in the way. If the other parts I mentioned are still the originals, I suggest changing them while you have good access. This way you will eliminate several other potential breakdowns in the future.

[Dave Wilkes]

The roads we were on were by most standards impassable plus heavy rain and freshly gravelled roads for over two hundred km
I think a rock got thrown up between the belt and pully. Or just mud buildup

She popped when I started it the next morning. Thought I had lost the alternator until a few miles later.

Original belt still on it. Previous owner did no maintenance that I know of

Thanks all