TV breakdown 2 days into trip

[waynefi]

I am 2 days into a 6 week camping trip and my truck broke down on the freeway. The serpentine belt broke, and the engine overheated. That belt drives the water pump, generator , and power steering.

We spent last night camped in the repair stations parking lot.

They tell me that when a serpentine breaks, it is usually because something else broke first, but we couldn’t see anything obvious. Does anyone else have any experience with this?

The annoying thing is that I had the truck (a Tacoma) in to Toyota for the 60000 mile repair less than 1000 miles ago

[time2roll]

Steering was probably a bit stiff also.

[1320Fastback]

Had to change a belt in the middle of our trip when we were in New Orleans. It had been squeaking since San Antonio and I couldn't stand it anymore. I always carry a extra but unless it were to break like yours did it stays under the seat.

Your belt, being 8 years old, regardless of mileage is due to be changed. It had probably been degrading for a while and depending on the recent repair Toyota did they may have never even looked at it.

How did the motor overheat? Did not all the red warning lights come on when the belt broke and the alternator stopped charging?

[Grit_dog]

^ excellent info.
Agreed, serpentine belts generally just don’t break on their own.

[CharlesinGA]

You do not say what year Taco you have. EDIT: I see its a 2011 according to your second post. If it has an alternator decoupler built into the alternator pulley, they are prone to seizing up and this will cause belt whipping and breakage.

The purpose of a decoupler (or overrunning clutch on some vehicles) it to prevent the alternator from becoming a flywheel between power pulses and pushing on the belt, which causes the whipping.

I am sure they do, but I have never seen a serpentine belt fail, don't care how many cracks you see in the ribs, they generally just don't break.

To determine if you have a decoupler or ORC on your alternator, look at the front of the pulley. Usually they have a cap on them, instead of the typical exposed nut and end of shaft.

A good video to watch to see the comparison of non-decoupler vs decoupler vs ORC on the same engine.

https://youtu.be/4EXYP1CmL9Q

and a video to help identify the various types of pulleys.

https://youtu.be/U7MD85ogCEo

Charles

[bguy]

Most serp belts I've seen lying on the road in pieces have been on hills or in passing lanes. That says it all to me. Under normal conditions your belt may have lasted longer without issue. But if you consider what happens when you get to a hill it no surprise that's where they tend to break.

[BenK]

Lucky your ICE isn't an interference engine with a timing belt

There isn't a one size fits all specification for serpentine belt replacement, so the OP should check their manual in prep for the future

I keep that last take off serpentine belt in my truck's toolkit

Don't like to push anything to the ratings and serpentine belts get replaced BEFORE the manual recommended mileage

[Campfire_Time]

carringb wrote:

drsteve wrote:
60K is very low mileage to experience a serpentine belt failure, I think most manufacturers specify 100K miles for belt replacement. I'd be looking for another factor, like maybe the tensioner.

But it's also 9 years old. Most rubber compounds start to deteriorate after 5.

Exactly.

[pianotuna]

Hi,

OEM belt from 2011. I'd replace it at 6 years.

[ItsyRV]

Wouldn't be surprised if during some other fix the belt was moved off a pulley and was riding the edge. This is another common reason belts fail, they get sliced and when the pulley edge rides the slice, it cause the belt to slide further ripping it apart.

While at it, check the hoses especially at the clamp locations.

[carringb]

drsteve wrote:
60K is very low mileage to experience a serpentine belt failure, I think most manufacturers specify 100K miles for belt replacement. I'd be looking for another factor, like maybe the tensioner.

But it's also 9 years old. Most rubber compounds start to deteriorate after 5.

[badercubed]

waynefi wrote:
Well, they couldn’t find anything besides the belt, so I’m on the road again

ENJOY!!

[waynefi]

Well, they couldn’t find anything besides the belt, so I’m on the road again

[Grit_dog]

time2roll wrote:
Don't over think it. Replace the belt and get on with the fun.
Usually these belts are good for 10+ years and 100,000+ miles. But not always.

Thanks for the reminder... mine is at 100k

Agreed, belt failures, on their own, are quite rare. Vary rare on a newer low mile vehicle like yours.
Anything is possible, but it is much more likely that one of the components/pulleys failed causing the belt to get thrown or shredded.
Bad luck, sounds like.

[Iraqvet05]

I was a temp biologist for the Nebraska Game and Parks one summer after college. Our district office in Kearney bought a new F150 from a dealership in Lincoln (2 hours away). I got to drive this brand new F150 back from the dealer. Half way home, some flexible rubber between the top of the radiator and grill came loose and got caught up in the serpentine. It threw the belt, which got lost on I-80 and left me stranded for hours. It happens...