Intermitent Clutch (i think) Squeal

[alex22808]

Hi all.

I am a complete novice with cars, my 04 yaris being my first one so please excuse the vagueness of my description.

I am currently having a strange issue. 99% of the time the car runs fine, but every now and then it produces a horrifying squeal/whine. I thought it was the clutch at first so went and had that looked at a mechanic who then replaced the worn parts (again, sorry for the vagueness).

However, this didnt fix the problem. it still has the occasional squeal. What i find odd about it is that it does not seem linked to anything i do i.e. it will squeal when in neutral as well as when in gear and it will squeal whether i depress the clutch or not. It will also squeal even after i pull off and go up the gears. The squeal eventually stops, but it usually lasts a good 5 minutes or so. It also tends to happen after the car has been left out in the cold/damp.

I am sorry this is so vague. Any help would be much appreciated. If there is anything else that i omitted that would be useful to know, just ask.

Many thanks

[andulong]

Often a squeal is caused by a worn or loose belt.

[SilverBack]

^This. Also, a loose pulley can wear down the belt faster.

[alex22808]

How serious a problem is it i.e do i need to go to the garage straight away or wait till a service? also, how easy problem to remedy is it if it is the belt (bearing in my mind this is my first car so i am a novice at diy on cars)?

thanks for the replies!

[tmontague]

very likely it's just your serpentine belt. It's to the left of your engine when facing the engine bay. Take a look at the ribbed side and see if it cracked. Could be worn out or loose. It's cheap to get replaced at a mechanic but don't install it too tight or it can prematurely wear out your pulleys

You can do it yourself as the belt will only run your $15-$25 all you have to do it loosen the alternator and get your hands/arms a little dirty

[alex22808]

Just took a look at the belt. It seems fine. I checked the grooved side and it fine ie the grooves were all there. it also felt pretty tight, so it seems unlikely that the squeal is caused by it being loose.

Is there any other options? i am no expert, but the belt seems fine to me. Again, thanks for the replies!

[CTScott]

Just took a look at the belt. It seems fine. I checked the grooved side and it fine ie the grooves were all there. it also felt pretty tight, so it seems unlikely that the squeal is caused by it being loose.

Is there any other options? i am no expert, but the belt seems fine to me. Again, thanks for the replies!

The happening most when it is cold/damp really points to the belt. The Yaris is tricky with belt tightening because it does not have a screw tension. Rather you have to pry the alternator away from the block and then tighten the bolt, so there is far less precision to tightening it than with a screw tensioner. Some brands of belts are better than others when it comes to squeaking. I have found that Dayco belts are the worst with the Yaris, where short of overtensioning the belt you can't make them stop squeaking (and that's when they are only a month or two old).

[alex22808]

The happening most when it is cold/damp really points to the belt. The Yaris is tricky with belt tightening because it does not have a screw tension. Rather you have to pry the alternator away from the block and then tighten the bolt, so there is far less precision to tightening it than with a screw tensioner. Some brands of belts are better than others when it comes to squeaking. I have found that Dayco belts are the worst with the Yaris, where short of overtensioning the belt you can't make them stop squeaking (and that's when they are only a month or two old).

In terms of checking the belt, what should i be looking for beyond the ribs being worn?

Also, there seems to be no tensioning device on the belt, unless it is on the underside. The belt just seems to fit round the 3 wheels and is tight just like that.

[CTScott]

In terms of checking the belt, what should i be looking for beyond the ribs being worn?

Also, there seems to be no tensioning device on the belt, unless it is on the underside. The belt just seems to fit round the 3 wheels and is tight just like that.

Look at the ribs for signs of them being shiny (called glazing of a belt). Also push against the long stretch of the belt. It should only deflect about 1 cm in the center of that stretch when pushing on it with one finger.

For tensioning, that is what I was saying above. The Yaris does not have a mechanism for easily doing so. You have to loosen the alternator bolts and then apply pressure against the alternator to move it away from the engine. While doing so you check the tension of the belt and once the deflection is OK, you tighten the alternator bolts while holding pressure on the alternator. When doing this a wooden hammer handle or something of that nature is what you use for leverage and you have to be careful not to crunch the oil control valve, which is mounted close to the alternator.

[tmontague]

I have used a long metal screwdriver, although wooden is ideal. Below is a picture of where the oil control valve is that you want to avoid. The first time I re installed a new belt I think I over tightened it as I wans't aware this was possible and cranked it. The belt didn't deflect much when I pushed on it so I loosened it due to fear of premature worn pulleys. A deflection os 1 cm is a good point to go with, I think there is a recommended amount in the manual somewhere.

Have you spilled anything on the belt recently? When the noise is happening open up the hood and see where it's coming from. If it's the belt it should e obvious. It is possible that the belt has worn a little and is now loose and just needs to be re tightened. If after being re tightened it squeals again then just install a new belt.

http://repairguide.autozone.com/znetrgs/repair_guide_content/en_us/images/0996b43f/81/b0/71/97/medium/0996b43f81b07197.gif

The above isn't the 1NZ-FE engine but its close and it has the sensor in the same position

[alex22808]

Cheers for the replies everyone. Its too dark out to have a look at it now, but will have a look tomorrow and report back!

[IllusionX]

Your 2004 probably has an extra pulley for the hydrolic powersteering..

[CTScott]

Your 2004 probably has an extra pulley for the hydrolic powersteering..

The French made MK1 Yaris actually have electric power steering, so he won't have the extra belt and double crank pulley, like our first gen has.