Z06Vette.com - Corvette Z06 Forum

**danoz** · 03-08-2008, 10:17 PM

I'm on my 4th belt in 4 months . I've tried Gates and the goodyear gatorback belts. They seem to get glazed after just 2 to 5 WOT runs. After that it's start with a chirping sound and progressively gets worse. I have the latest Procharger P1 Stage II kit with 4.75 pulley which was purchased and installed by a reputable shop out here about 5 Months ago. The belt is aligned correctly no damage to the sides and there was good tension on each belt. For those of you who have fixed this problem what did you do? Try a different pulley like the one from reichard racing if so any pros and cons? Did you do an 8rib conversion if so how much for parts and labor? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks - Dan

**PerforminNorman** · 03-08-2008, 11:03 PM

Some performance shops have laser alignment tools that may help you find the problem. Some have found that the brackets are the culprits.

CraZee ZO6 · 03-09-2008, 01:26 AM

You need the laser alignment tool. It will help alot and that is most likely problem especially if your running boost lower than 12. Alignment is key with prochargers very hard to align percfect. Once you do that you will be problem free with that stage II kit.

mdhmi · 03-15-2008, 05:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by danoz

Procharger Belt Problems

Jumbo Shrimp

How much boost are you pushing and what size pulley? 6 rib I take it?

**danoz** · 03-15-2008, 11:32 PM

It's a 4.75in pulley. I was told it is the largest one they make. It's huge! I'm running about 4.5 to 5 lbs of boost. It is a 6rib belt. It has been aligned properly and the shop has tried both the Gates and the Gatorback and when they install they do run the car(for 20-40miles) and adjust it a few times before giving it back to me. The Gatorback seems to hold up longer but it glazes the belt after sever WOT runs. If I don't get on it, it will last a while. Are you running the same set up if so how long do your belts last? I called the vendor they suspect it might be the bolt holding the tensioner in place might be the culprit we will mark it with a sharpee next time to see if it is moving at all. - Dan

mdhmi · 03-16-2008, 01:32 AM

I ran a D-1SC with a 4.50 pulley and ran into the same problems you have. The ultimate fix was rather expensive (I switched to a twin turbo package).

It sounds like you've got the basics covered. I'm waiting for Mike to chime in as I know he has extensive experience with ProChargers.

RocketSled · 03-16-2008, 08:47 AM

Belts glaze because they're slipping. Minor misalignment should have very little effect on slippage. You don't have enough tension, either because the tensioner is soft or the load on your belt is too much for some reason.

**MikesZ06** · 03-16-2008, 09:32 AM

If the sides of your belt are not fraying or turning white then misalignment is not a problem for you.

Everything you've described gives the appearance of the belt not being tensioned properly. This could be either because your tuner hasn't tightened it enough or it could be a tensioner malfunction.

If you are running a 4.75 pulley then you should have max boost of about 6 to 6.5 lbs. An 8 rib belt (pulleys, etc) should not be needed for that low of boost.

Do you have a boost gauge in your car?
If so, what boost levels are you seeing?
Does the boost vary from one dyno run to another?

If your boost with that pulley is only about 4 lbs then you are most likely getting some slippage.

When you get the chance, take hold of the belt right before it wraps around the alternator and try to twist it. You should not be able to twist it with your fingers more than a little bit (a few degrees). This is a pretty easy way to get a feel for belt tension.

Mike

*edit* Another thing to make sure of is that you are using the correct size belt. If the belt is even a little bit too long, the tensioner will not be able to tighten it sufficiently.

**danoz** · 03-16-2008, 06:39 PM

Mike,
I am running a boost gauge and it does show about 4.5 to 5lbs. I do have H/C and headers. When it was on the dyno it put down 567hp/482tq with a peak boost of 5lbs and A/F of 11:1 (if that matters). Each time the belt starts to squeal I would notice the boost dropping off to about 1-3psi. And the belt themselves showed no sign of wear or fraying on the sides after it was glazed. Even the tension felt pretty good. I tried twisting the belt as you described(read one of your previous posts on the subject) and it would not bend. The shop that has installed the kit has installed the same kit on alot of C5's and most of them have had no problems. I know a couple of them and they beat there cars to death and have had no issues. But there quite a few others in Vegas like myself that have had numerous problems with the belts getting glazed. What do you think of the Reachard Racing Pullies and ECS tensioners? Heard anything about them? Any other suggestions? Thank you for you time. And thanks to everyone who has replied. - Dan

**MikesZ06** · 03-16-2008, 09:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by danoz

Mike,
I am running a boost gauge and it does show about 4.5 to 5lbs. I do have H/C and headers. When it was on the dyno it put down 567hp/482tq with a peak boost of 5lbs and A/F of 11:1 (if that matters). Each time the belt starts to squeal I would notice the boost dropping off to about 1-3psi. And the belt themselves showed no sign of wear or fraying on the sides after it was glazed. Even the tension felt pretty good. I tried twisting the belt as you described(read one of your previous posts on the subject) and it would not bend. The shop that has installed the kit has installed the same kit on alot of C5's and most of them have had no problems. I know a couple of them and they beat there cars to death and have had no issues. But there quite a few others in Vegas like myself that have had numerous problems with the belts getting glazed. What do you think of the Reachard Racing Pullies and ECS tensioners? Heard anything about them? Any other suggestions? Thank you for you time. And thanks to everyone who has replied. - Dan

Your first 4 sentences tells me that it is belt slip for sure, not misalignment.

Nothing wrong with Reachard pullies but I see no indication that the pullies are a factor in your slippage.
I haven't seen the ECS tensioner but I have seen the Procharger Stage 2 tensioner and it is well built and should easily handle 6 pounds (or more) boost even on a 6 rib setup. I have literally seen dozens of Procharged C5's and C6's with that setup and no belt slippage.

You problem has me stymied. I, quite frankly, don't understand why you are getting belt slippage with that low boost.

Can I assume that you have retightened the tensioner after the install.... by that I mean after you have done some hard driving and stretched out the belt? After a new belt heats up it will stretch out some and retensioning is a very good idea.

btw, when you twist the belt by hand (at the alternator) there should be just a little give to it. Believe it or not, you can actually overtighten the belt.

The only other thing I can suggest to you is to bring that puppy to MC Racing here in KC. They can make sure your belt slippage is history.

Mike

ps, I use Gates belts...not a big fan of the Gatorbacks

**danoz** · 03-16-2008, 09:53 PM

For the last 3 belt replacements someone at the shop drives the car for about 40-50 miles and readjusts the tensioner accordingly if there is any slack. This is repeated a couple times before giving it back. As for the kit I have the P1(?) Stage II kit, it was purchased in November of 2007. I don't know if that means I have the stage tensioners though. I will ask about that on Monday.

Dan

RocketSled · 03-17-2008, 07:39 PM

Something doesn't quite make sense. 567RWHP on 4.5-5Lbs of boost with an 11:1 AFR with no other major engine mods is too much HP. Assuming 15% drive line loss, that says you're making in excess of 660HP at the flywheel. Waay more than you should be getting with the level of boost you're running.

The more boost you make, the more load is placed on the accessory belt. Are you sure that you don't have an underdrive pulley someplace in the setup? That would result in a higher belt travel rate than normal, and you could actually be spinning the blower a lot faster than you expect.

Of course, the boost gage would need to be reading low, too, so maybe my theory is B.S.. But I am running 6.5 Lbs on my Vortech with the OEM 6 rib set and I have no belt slippage at all (on a belt that's going on 2 years old).

**danoz** · 03-17-2008, 08:13 PM

I do have Trickflow Heads, Comp Cam, and Dynotech headers, but no underdrive pulley. If I were completely stock I would probably be in the mid to high 400s based on what I've seen from the other Procharger vettes at the shop.
2yrs on one belt, I envy you. I would just be happy if I could get a belt to hold on for a year.

vortech · 03-18-2008, 08:16 PM

Check to make sure that your alternator power steering bracket is not cracked. Also all the belts stretch after initial break in-they need to be re-tightened. The Goodyear and the Gates stetch the most so you have to keep a close eye on the tension. Also make sure the by-pass valve is working properly as well. If it doesn't open soon enough it can toss the belt real quick. Maybe try a Dayco Poly-Cog belt-I've been trying them lately with good success.

**danoz** · 03-20-2008, 09:00 PM

The shop owner drove the car for a couple of weeks and checked/pulled apart the pullies/tensioner/bracket and everything seemed fine, nothing obvious and then after some more hard driving the tensioner finally gave out in a big way. So finally we have the answer. Thank you all for your replies and many thanks to the shop for all their effort. I am so glad this is finally over. - Dan