I had tighten my serpentine belt by using a 1/2"deflection rule. I am not too convince with that as if the wheel bearing distant is shorter, the 1/2" rule might not work. I am wondering if there is any inexpensive way to determine the force required. My car has a manual belt tension adjustment.
Its a general topic that can be apply to any cars. Do I still need to include all those information?
always please
The tension on the belt should be just enough to force it to rotate the pulleys without the belt slipping (usually squealing or a visual inspection of the belt on the pulleys will tell you, look for bouncing of the belt, abnormal movement, etc). You also don't want to over-tighten it and damage/break the belt or pulleys and bearings. Try the half-inch setting and watch it run the accessories. If you notice some slipping on a pulley, turn it off and tighten a little further until the belt just stops slipping or bouncing. My old Catalina's alternator belt was loose when running over the summer but seemed tight when it was off. I tightened it in this manner and a squealing/ charging problem went away.
