Serpentine replacement led to overheating

[McCoy19]

I have a 2005 4.0L w/ AC. I decided to replace the old serpentine belt due to obnoxious squealing but had no problems with overheating or having any rise in engine temperature. I replaced the serpentine belt and ran to make an errand. Then a couple of hours later I drove 3-4 miles and found that the belt was shredded the engine temperature spiked and radiator fluid started spewing everywhere. Pulled over and replaced the belt with another 3 hours later. Made it 1 mile before started overheating again. I pulled over to let it cool down then made it less than a mile then so on all the way back home. Took me over an hour to drive the 3-4 miles due to overheating. The new belt seems to have no markings or damage. I am truly stumped.

The pulleys all move freely without the belt on them. The belts are all the same size and width. The belt does seem a tad bit loose. Does anyone have any ideas?

 

[mjbcomp]

Tell us what brand and part number belt you purchased to start.

 

[McCoy19]

The one that was shredded was Duralast Belt 883K6 ( autozone) ​

​

The one currently installed is Dayco Poly Rib Serpentine Belt: 88.25 "Long, 6 Rib Count, Engineered For High Mileage​

Part # 5060883 ( from advanced auto)

 

[Rcroane]

And you are certain you routed the belt correctly? I would triple check on the next belt.

 

[Obi-Wan]

And you are certain you routed the belt correctly? I would triple check on the next belt.

@McCoy19 , here's the correct belt routing diagram for your jeep.

 

[MutantNinjaTJ]

You had to have installed it incorrectly for it to give up the Ghost that quickly. And now you have a real issue going on. You may have some head/head gasket issues since it overheated that much. Once these engines start with overheating, it becomes a real guessing game to correct. I had a Cherokee with a 4.0 and I never got it figured out. Good luck

 

[macleanflood]

I just a head gasket in an 04 WJ 4.0. There was a split in the heater hose underneath where you couldn't see it. Lost all the coolant, overheated... neighbors kids drove it a couple of times trying to troubleshoot. By the time I went and picked it up with my trailer and pulled the thermostat and ran distilled water through it...soon as it got to temp there was a fan blade of water out between the block and head.

I'd check your fan clutch and water pump to start. Check for codes too.

-Mac

 

[mrblaine]

I just a head gasket in an 04 WJ 4.0. There was a split in the heater hose underneath where you couldn't see it. Lost all the coolant, overheated... neighbors kids drove it a couple of times trying to troubleshoot. By the time I went and picked it up with my trailer and pulled the thermostat and ran distilled water through it...soon as it got to temp there was a fan blade of water out between the block and head.

I'd check your fan clutch and water pump to start. Check for codes too.

-Mac

I strongly suspect his first attempt at the belt install was routed incorrectly and spun the water pump the wrong direction. Its all downhill from there.

 

[Jerry Bransford]

X2, it's possible to misroute the serpentine belt and it appears you did just that. And the store brand Duralast from Autozone is the LAST brand I'd ever install for a critical part like that. Personally I'd head to NAPA or call around for a replacement and see if they have a Gates or a Gatorback belt which are good replacement brands.

 

[macleanflood]

@mrblaine needs a box of Duralast stickers to mail out with the hello kitty stickers.

I burned my clutch line in half and their was only one auto parts store close that had one...it was terrible junk and was returned and replaced with a Luk as soon as I got home.

That was me being an idiot. It happens.

-Mac

 

[mrblaine]

@mrblaine needs a box of Duralast stickers to mail out with the hello kitty stickers.

Like I've said, we need a Duralast list of the good parts because they are not all bad and I am 100% not a fan of Autozone at all. But, the 97-02 power steering pressure hose is Edelmann and that's about as good as it gets.

 

[McCoy19]

And you are certain you routed the belt correctly? I would triple check on the next belt.

Yes. I triple-checked the diagram after the installation of the first belt. What I noticed was there was there was not much tension, and i could turn the belt. At the time i did not know any better because there way to tighten it up compared to the 90s tj. Would that be a tensioner failure?

 

[McCoy19]

You had to have installed it incorrectly for it to give up the Ghost that quickly. And now you have a real issue going on. You may have some head/head gasket issues since it overheated that much. Once these engines start with overheating, it becomes a real guessing game to correct. I had a Cherokee with a 4.0 and I never got it figured out. Good luck

oh great. The easiest installs sometimes become the longest projects

 

[BlueC]

What I noticed was there was there was not much tension, and i could turn the belt.

I'll take a guess and say you did not replace the tensioner or idler pulley at the same time, which is a mistake. If I'm correct, the old tensioner was likely too weak and allowed the belt to jump around and shred itself, and likely slipped to the point of not spinning the pump fast enough.

 

[McCoy19]

I'll take a guess and say you did not replace the tensioner or idler pulley at the same time, which is a mistake. If I'm correct, the old tensioner was likely too weak and allowed the belt to jump around and shred itself, and likely slipped to the point of not spinning the pump fast enough.

You would be 100% correct, I did not.

 

[McCoy19]

You would be 100% correct, I did not.

Do you think it would lead to the head gasket being blown, or go ahead and replace those and see what happens?

Limping back home I never allowed it to get in the critical temperature before shutting it down for an extended period of time to cool.

 

[BlueC]

Do you think it would lead to the head gasket being blown, or go ahead and replace those and see what happens?

The overheating could lead to head gasket issues. I'd go ahead and do a good serp belt including pullies (Gates brand or equivalent), and I’d also throw a water pump on there if it's time or close to time to replace, then see what happens. You may be fine, or you might have done some damage. Just apply the KISS method and eliminate/diagnose the easiest problems first.

 

[macleanflood]

First belt might not have been long enough.

Second belt seems correct.

And see above... completely agree...

You don't always need a new tensioner and idler pulley...but if it's been a while they're not expensive.

Is it consistently overheating now whenever you drive it?

I'd pull the thermostat housing and see if the water pump is circulating fluid.

-Mac

 

[McCoy19]

The overheating could lead to head gasket issues. I'd go ahead and do a good serp belt including pullies (Gates brand or equivalent), and I’d also throw a water pump on there if it's time or close to time to replace, then see what happens. You may be fine, or you might have done some damage. Just apply the KISS method and eliminate/diagnose the easiest problems first.

Thanks!

 

[freedom_in_4low]

@McCoy19 , here's the correct belt routing diagram for your jeep.

View attachment 456159

Last time I had my belt off I tried putting it back on from memory. Instead of running the belt from 5-6-4-3 I ran it 5-4-6-3. Everything spins the right direction and it was tight enough that the tensioner didn't fully extend but I could spin the water pump pulley by hand against the belt so I knew something wasn't right. I started it anyway and immediately turned it off because the belt was squealing like a banshee. My decal is gone so I brought it up in the FSM and corrected it.