Serpentine belt question

[Akinsmj8385]

My truck has 115000 miles on it. I bought it with 45000 from a Chevy dealer. Dont know if the changed it out or not. Should I change out the serpentine belt? When I looked at it it still looked like its in good condition. No cracking or signs of wear. Also, is the aftermarket belts any good or should I go to the dealer?

[txab]

I would change it. The belt material used these days doesn't show breakdown like the old material. This goes for hoses as well. Factory belts were designed for 100k interval. Gates rubber or Goodyear would be great replacement choices.

[Morgan1986]

question if its not showing break down is it breaking down ? What makes it different than the material they used before "these days" define how long of a time period these days are. example 1995 to now or 2000 to now .

[txab]

The material that is used is called EPDM. Has been in use since the late 90's when car makers phased out the use of neoprene belts.

 

And they do wear out or break down. They just don't show all the obvious signs. They are designed to run a lot of miles. Gates suggests using their measuring guage as one way to determine belt replacement for their Micro-V belts. As the belt wears/ages the micro-V ribs wear down causing the belt to slip lower and lower into the pulley grooves. Gates has a pretty good video of the whole process.

[Akinsmj8385]

Thanks for the input. Yeah I think I am going to replace them as soon as possible. It's Better than losing an engine (which i read can happen) or getting stranded on the side of the road. Thanks.

[gmtech4]

serp belts do crack and if its not cracked ,dont panic and replace it

 

my 2 cents