AFS Service

Today’s AFS Service article focuses on your serpentine belt. Your serpentine belt is a long belt that’s driven by your engine. It winds around several accessories that power important automotive systems. Let’s go over them.

First, the serpentine belt drives your air conditioning system. Next, the belt powers the alternator.

The serpentine belt may also run the pumps for both the power steering and power brakes. In some midside sedans, power steering may have an electric drive and power brakes can be vacuum driven.

And, on many vehicles, the serpentine belt powers the water pump (on some cars, the water pump is powered by the timing belt).

Your AFS Service service technician can perform a visual inspection of the belt to see if it has any cracks that signal the belt could fail soon and will measure the amount of belt material to make sure there is enough.

Hortonville drivers should be aware that there’s a special, spring loaded pulley attached to the engine called the tensioner pulley and sometimes an extra pulley call the idler pulley. Their job is to make sure there’s a constant tension on the serpentine belt so that it doesn’t slip. The spring can become worn and no longer provide the necessary pressure to keep the belt tight. That’s why it’s often recommended that the tensioner, and the idler pulley if so equipped, be replaced at the same time as the serpentine belt.

All in all, the serpentine belt’s an important part for the function of your midside sedan. And it’s not that expensive to replace at AFS Service – so it’s good to do so before it fails.

At AFS Service in Hortonville WI (54944) we install quality NAPA replacement parts. Give us a call at 920.779.4199. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.

The following Serpentine Belt video is presented by AFS Service:

The following Serpentine Belt animation is presented by AFS Service:

You know that long belt that snakes around the front of your engine? It’s called the serpentine belt. The serpentine belt is driven by the engine as it turns. It powers your alternator, air conditioning compressor, and power steering pump. On some vehicles it also runs the water pump, radiator fan, and power brakes. Sounds like a lot of important stuff doesn’t it?

If your serpentine belt were to break on one of our Hortonville WI roads, your battery would die in a few miles. If it runs your fan or water pump, your engine could overheat. And steering and braking could be more difficult. Obviously, the best thing is to replace your serpentine belt before it breaks.

Check your owner’s manual for when it’s recommended that you replace your serpentine belt – or just ask your Hortonville WI service advisor at AFS Service by calling 920.779.4199. He can inspect the belt as well to see if it’s in trouble.

You may have been told by a service advisor in Hortonville to look for cracks in your belt to see if it needs to be replaced. Of course, cracks are still a concern, but modern belt material doesn’t crack as often as old belts did. What we look for these days is the thickness of the belt. We have a special little tool at AFS Service that measures the depth of the grooves in the belt to see if it needs replacing.

A worn belt can slip or be misaligned, putting undue stress on the accessories it runs.

Now you can imagine it’s important for the belt to be tight, so there’s a tensioner pulley on your engine that puts pressure on the belt to keep it at the right tension. The spring on the tensioner wears out over time so we recommend replacing the tensioner pulley at the same time as the serpentine belt.

Replacing your serpentine belt on schedule, or when an inspection warrants it, will keep you from an unexpected breakdown.

Give us a call at AFS Service or stop by 330 E Main St in Hortonville, WI 54944. You can find us online at

At AFS Service in Hortonville WI we install quality NAPA replacement parts. To learn more about NAPA AutoCare, visit www.NAPAAutoCare.com.