Squealing Noise When Wet, Belt?

[Mcginty33]

Welcome to the Forum.
Unfortunately, southerngirl321 hasn't been active here since her last post. That is one of the frustrating things about a forum. That "splash shield" is actually an OEM air duct that came with Explorers that had the factory tow package. It was to help channel air from the cutout in the front lower valance to the area of the transmission/PTU for cooling. That was its purpose. Whether a secondary benefit was to act as a splash shield, I can't say.

Peter

Thanks Peter,

I’m probably going to replace the belt and see if I can fabricate something to cover the area like others have mentioned.

 

[peterk9]

Thanks Peter,

I’m probably going to replace the belt and see if I can fabricate something to cover the area like others have mentioned.

Or you can try a different belt like blwnsmoke did in his post above and see if that works.
Merry Christmas!

Peter

 

[Ryan See]

No, this was not an air scoop and I do not have a trailer package. Before the shield was put on, I could look from top of engine down to ground. This shield covers the underside of the serpentine belt.

Update. This part is not to direct air. Only to prevent water from entering as southerngirl321 stated. I have included part number for the aformentioned lower shield (base part number 10494) specific number for my truck 7810494. Also requires clips to install onto frame. (Clip part number W716006S439).

 

[peterk9]

Welcome to the Forum Ryan.
Does this item have a hollow duct inside it? Does one end mount close to the opening in the lower front bumper valance? I have seen descriptions of it as a radiator support, an under body air deflector and splash shield. Does one end look anything like the picture?

Peter

 

[Ryan See]

Welcome to the Forum Ryan.
Does this item have a hollow duct inside it? Does one end mount close to the opening in the lower front bumper valance? I have seen descriptions of it as a radiator support, an under body air deflector and splash shield. Does one end look anything like the picture?

Peter

View attachment 166623

I have ordered this part. It is not currently available to me. But my impression from the drawing, (pictured above),given to me from the dealership is that its a splash shield. I referenced the post entered by southerngirl321. She referred to it as "lower shield". It mounts to the frame at the cross bar just in front of the motor to my understanding. I am due to receive the part this coming Tues or Wed. I will post photos of actual part to assist others.

 

[blwnsmoke]

Update. This part is not to direct air. Only to prevent water from entering as southerngirl321 stated. I have included part number for the aformentioned lower shield (base part number 10494) specific number for my truck 7810494. Also requires clips to install onto frame. (Clip part number W716006S439).

View attachment 166622

That is the air duct that comes with the tow package. My 2011 has it and you need to remove it for oil changes. It has two 1/4 turn thumb screws in the back and 1 in the front. It is not for water and I had issues with belt slipping WITH that shield (err.. air duct) till I put a NAPA belt on.

 

[Sparkn]

Trying to hunt this down has been a mystery and I don't want to just throw money at it willy nilly. I already had a professional mechanic charge me to replace the belt tensioner only to tell me later when that didn't work that Ford uses weak tensioners and there's nothing he can do about it.

My charging system stops charging in the rain when moving down the road. It goes on then goes off. No warning lights. No codes being thrown. I have trended it with OBDLinkMX and the associated OBDLink software on my phone. The charging voltage is 14.4V and drops to 12V. It will flip back and forth in the rain. The wetter it is the longer it stays off. When it kicks back in it is sudden enough that the belts squeak as it engages.

What I'm afraid of is that if it is the alternator, what's going to stop the next alternator from going bad if the cause is getting wet? The alternator obviously works or it wouldn't kick on and off. It never fails when dry. Voltage regulator? Is it internal or external. I must be a stupid googler because finding the resources I'm looking for has been frustrating to date.

Not a new problem. Been dicking with it for a while. Never killed a battery. I'd like to get this resolved before I tackle the 2-3 hard/slow shifting. I've only got 110,000 miles on this and the 3.5L non turbo needs to get me to a quarter million at least.

2013 Explorer Limited 3.5L non turbo

 

[15Limited]

Is this voltage fluctuation more than the correct/normal on-off as properly directed by the charging system? To save gas, Ford has programmed the charging system to work when the battery drains to a certain level...the charging system doesn’t run at 13.8-14.5 all the time like the older vehicles.

 

[Sparkn]

It's certainly appears to be on/off cycling. Like I said, It's either at 14.4V or 12V (the 12V is in the range of 11.9-12.1V). No in between. I've never seen the fluctuation while on dry roads. I first got curious about it when I noticed my windshield wipers changing speed. It's a solid 14.4V at all times when dry. The headlights go dim enough to affect my view of the road and I get flashed by oncoming traffic when the lights get bright at the wrong moments.

 

[boominXplorer]

Since the alt pulley is a solid deal and not a coupler design I'd assume the alternator is on its way out and the moisture is effecting it.

 

[blwnsmoke]

Trying to hunt this down has been a mystery and I don't want to just throw money at it willy nilly. I already had a professional mechanic charge me to replace the belt tensioner only to tell me later when that didn't work that Ford uses weak tensioners and there's nothing he can do about it.

My charging system stops charging in the rain when moving down the road. It goes on then goes off. No warning lights. No codes being thrown. I have trended it with OBDLinkMX and the associated OBDLink software on my phone. The charging voltage is 14.4V and drops to 12V. It will flip back and forth in the rain. The wetter it is the longer it stays off. When it kicks back in it is sudden enough that the belts squeak as it engages.

What I'm afraid of is that if it is the alternator, what's going to stop the next alternator from going bad if the cause is getting wet? The alternator obviously works or it wouldn't kick on and off. It never fails when dry. Voltage regulator? Is it internal or external. I must be a stupid googler because finding the resources I'm looking for has been frustrating to date.

Not a new problem. Been dicking with it for a while. Never killed a battery. I'd like to get this resolved before I tackle the 2-3 hard/slow shifting. I've only got 110,000 miles on this and the 3.5L non turbo needs to get me to a quarter million at least.

2013 Explorer Limited 3.5L non turbo

Your thread had been merged with an existing one that goes over this issue.

Your belt is getting wet and slipping. It slips, you lose alternator charge, belt dries pretty quickly (5-15 seconds), dries, grabs again, starts charging.

Many different theories.. replace the belt. I used a NAPA belt and never had an issue again after trying 2 Ford OEM belts

 

[Sparkn]

I wish I could say that. Belt has been replace several times. Tensioner once (OEM). 2 OEM belts, one from O'Reilly, and one from Autozone. It seems weird the alternator would stop and the AC doesn't. More traction on the AC pulley? I'll try a Napa belt, but I don't think replacing a belt several times a year is the ultimate solution. If the Napa belt makes it go away for good, I'll be good with that.

Heck, the first belt that was replaced squeaked the same day. That's why I replaced the tensioner. If the belt truly is slipping the pulley should be stopping. Maybe I'll rig something up to photograph that occurring if the Napa belt doesn't work.

 

[Sparkn]

Reading through the entire 8 pages on this problem I think that if the Napa belt doesn't work I'm going to remove the fender splash guards. They don't seem to keep the doors clean anyway.

 

[peterk9]

Reading through the entire 8 pages on this problem I think that if the Napa belt doesn't work I'm going to remove the fender splash guards. They don't seem to keep the doors clean anyway.

Welcome to the Forum.

Peter

 

[Adrian Gitch]

Trying to hunt this down has been a mystery and I don't want to just throw money at it willy nilly. I already had a professional mechanic charge me to replace the belt tensioner only to tell me later when that didn't work that Ford uses weak tensioners and there's nothing he can do about it.

My charging system stops charging in the rain when moving down the road. It goes on then goes off. No warning lights. No codes being thrown. I have trended it with OBDLinkMX and the associated OBDLink software on my phone. The charging voltage is 14.4V and drops to 12V. It will flip back and forth in the rain. The wetter it is the longer it stays off. When it kicks back in it is sudden enough that the belts squeak as it engages.

What I'm afraid of is that if it is the alternator, what's going to stop the next alternator from going bad if the cause is getting wet? The alternator obviously works or it wouldn't kick on and off. It never fails when dry. Voltage regulator? Is it internal or external. I must be a stupid googler because finding the resources I'm looking for has been frustrating to date.

Not a new problem. Been dicking with it for a while. Never killed a battery. I'd like to get this resolved before I tackle the 2-3 hard/slow shifting. I've only got 110,000 miles on this and the 3.5L non turbo needs to get me to a quarter million at least.

2013 Explorer Limited 3.5L non turbo

What about an aftermarket tensioner like Gates or Dayco etc... A lot of times certain aftermarket brands are better quality.

 

[Sparkn]

I thought about a different tensioner, but, for right now I've already replaced the tensioner at the stealership (looks like a ***** to replace; maybe through the fender?). I also looked into the Napa belt and found it is a rebranded Gates belt so the belts I've been using should be the same as what I bought from O'Reilly. I'm still going to install a Napa belt. The other thing I haven't found mentioned yet was whether the pulley was glazed. No belt will last on a worn out pulley. I'm considering changing the pulley out. The alternator from Ford costs a king's ransom. Aftermarket I could get for as little as $121, but I'm going to try and just replace the pulley. Shop price will still only be a third the cost of just the part from the stealership.

 

[Adrian Gitch]

Did they spin the a/c compressor pulley freely to make sure that’s not going bad? I’ve witnessed some belts squeal and actually break because of the compressor clutch/pulley assembly going bad and eventually locking up even with the a/c turned off.

 

[Sparkn]

A/C pulley and clutch were fine last checked.

 

[peterk9]

Chances are that if this squealing only happens under wet conditions that the problem is likely the belt as many others have found out.

Peter

 

[Sparkn]

Yes. But, changing belts as often as oil is abnormal and has to have a root cause separate from normal wear and tear.