Easy way to install a stretch-belt

Just a quick demonstration on how you can install a stretch belt without buying the specific tool for your car. Install a couple of zip-ties, route the belt, turn the crank, and cut the ties off. You’re done!

[@JoseSanchez-xl3ur]

Tried for about an hour to get the new belt on, went inside and saw this video and immediately ran back out to try it and mustard enough strength to give it a go again. Literally took a minute and worked first try, thank you!!! 🙏🏽

[@Ricketwrecker406]

Works well. Done it this way many times.

[@evgenka8865]

Для этого есть натяжитель, который надо использовать для установки ремня без его повреждения. Это займет времени 2 минуты

[@user-dj1hh7sh2x]

Is this Universal,Will it work on a spring tensioner.

[@montewright111]

Mustered

[@georgemoreno3569]

I just lived this comment today. My 10 year old showed it to me and I was done in 5 min after an hour of busted knuckles. He called it the zip tie hack😂

[@TwilaShaffer]

😮 I am a 59 yr old Grandma trying to fix my car! Put in new batter, new Alternator but this damn is the death of me! I will be trying this in The morning! I am beat was at it for 10 hours in this TX heat! Fingers are crossed for tomorrow

[@ThesSlimJim]

Did you ever get it ?:) ps working on the same problem over here 😂

[@sashalynn5256]

I am over 50 and not as strong as I used to be. I couldn't get my serpentine belt on with the tensioner opened up as far as it would go (the 30 degree weather probably didn't help). I had given up and put the old, squeaky belt back on. I saw this and figured I would give it one more try. Thanks for the video! You helped this old lady to change a belt for the first time and saved me some money.

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Glad to help! That why I post these videos.

[@OKBAOK]

If this old lady can do it, how much more the guys. Thanks for the encouragement 👍🙂

[@cgorky]

This is one of the best KZbin videos I have ever seen! None of the other videos on how to replace the power steering belt on a 2011 Mitsubishi Outlander GT can even begin to compare! So much time and frustration saved! Thank you!

[@svetlossvemira5490]

. OVO SI DOBRO SMISLIO , BRAVO . GUD MEN . URADIO SI PRAVU STVAR ŠTO SI SNIMIO VIDEO I ZA CEO SVET . NASTAVI SA RADOM I SNIMANJEM VIDEA . PODRZAVA.

[@isaiahwilson5207]

Damn you're a genius. This worked perfectly took about 5 minutes

[@desmondcos7360]

You are the goat .Thanks it works

[@thomascrossjr569]

Thank you 🙏🏾 my friend 😊I used a shoestring and it worked like a charm 😁

[@user-cm5qh5tw9n]

The best trick without the tool. Thank You!

[@andrewhoyt7734]

A wrench is a tool! Your also a tool/fool!

[@dennisgray8860]

Just used the zip-tie method to install a geo tracker's power steering/air compressor belt and it worked! Previously, I tried two different belt stretching tools that could not attach to the pullies properly and did not work at all. The zip-tie method described here worked where nothing else did. WTG Redeemed Mechanic!

[@russellscott1683]

Thank you for this video, worked like a charm and was literally the only thing that worked.

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Glad it helped!

[@frankperez7885]

I've never seen that before great idea 💡😊

[@Black-N-Toasty]

Bro!!! Thank you sooo much for the advice.. I was ready to give up it's just dam too hard😤... Who would of thought of the zip tie method🤔 because not me.😏...thank you..😇

[@dannyvaldovinos648]

Thanks for the tip. This work perfect for me.

[@williegreen7148]

A clever ideal!! Thank you.

[@roboticusroboticus7912]

Man, why did I not think of that? You are a genius sir.

[@alandonaghy2983]

Saved my ass bro

[@kevintroung6518]

Good job buddy ❤❤❤

[@thomasnelsonjr8605]

Buddy I am so glad you posted this video I have been out here for 2 days broke up belt tensioner got a new one still trying to get that belt on came inside took a break went to the KZbin videos and saw your post and it worked for me thank you brother thank you thank you thank you

[@alexmann8551]

This works so well, if the zip ties snap the first time add more

[@raymondlantz9278]

Clever…fiendishly clever!!!

[@christophermaldonado1777]

Zip ties work good for open pulleys, you could also use a hose clamp. For pulleys that are closed/no open slots you gotta use the special tool or sometimes a pry bar or screwdriver. The worst ones are when they are at the back of the pulley, behind the main belt grooves

[@true_93love]

Saved me big time. I was at my wit's end. Thank you.

[@Raceb8420]

A mechanic tip video posted three years ago with only seven comments? Must be a good tip!

[@RedeemedMechanic]

9200 views and 175 likes on KZbin. 145,000 views and 1425 likes on TikTok. I think it’s reaching its intended audience. Not all tips need to be long-winded or aimed at an advanced audience. I have other videos for that.

[@Raceb8420]

@@RedeemedMechanic And we thank you. Hard to find a creator such as yourself nowadays. Keep it up👍

[@Randicles]

Ahhh this is satisfying

[@jamiegillis1972]

Dude you are a god! You just saved me from a mental breakdown.

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Just a human, but glad to help!

[@benjaminmoralesvillarreal2107]

😂😂

[@user-bm6qj5xs2m]

Sweet you genius

[@markstroud7038]

You da man! Thank you.

[@ShawnBrizuela-wo2yp]

Thank you God I was about to lose my shit trying to get that belt on

[@geikkomk2480]

Same i pulled super hard with both end tryna make it go back in place 😂

[@ShannonSmith4u2]

Super cool, simple, inexpensive! Nicely done

[@daniela3477]

Great idea

[@garrethdovey2861]

Very good, the old ‘waking in on’ method is always a go to.

[@adumbkidwithengines5949]

Nice, have to change a water pump on a ford fiesta, was thinking about buying the tool for the belt on reinstall but I think this would work great, I’m going to give it a try and see 👍

[@andrewhoyt7734]

Tool for idler pulley is just a socket. Nothing special needed just turn idler keeping tension while removing the belt and again when putting on the new one

[@minivanmadness2345]

Damn that is a great trick

[@johnwfleming2077]

Freaking awesome tip! Thank you!

[@digitalbilly]

Awesome trick thank you

[@LexyThomas134]

I just losen one bolt on one of the easiest pulleys to get to. It drops the pulley down just enough to slide the belt on, then slide the bolt back in and tighten it up. Done. went through hell for hours before that lol now it only takes a few minutes

[@true_93love]

I tried that and didn't work. I even loosened a second one and still couldn't get it. Smh.

[@LexyThomas134]

@@true_93love Yeah, they're a pain lol not enough room to work. I got small hands though which makes it a little easier. Right when you think you got it, the belt will fall off one of the pulleys haha Use a big flathead screw driver and try to pry the belt up onto the pulley you loosened while tightening the bolt. You may need another person with you to help. Makes it a lot easier anyways

[@marcomedina7313]

This is way better then the stupid tool thanks

[@trinaquair206]

Sic wit it thank you

[@gaspuppygarage3782]

Loosening its tension device also works too!

[@RedeemedMechanic]

There is no tensioning device on a stretch belt system. The elasticity of belt is the tensioning device. While they look similar to serpentine belts, they’re are incompatible with each other.

[@guillermosanchezll]

It worked dam well on 2.4 compass like a hack charm after trying with 16mm to no avail kept slipping off but ties dont 🎉

[@user-cc6wj9mb9v]

The crack head designer’s couldn’t put in a tensioner like other engines have, so thankfully you came up with an excellent idea!!!!!!

[@rascalcampos2529]

I just use a piece of cardboard between the wheel and belt and it goes right in

[@daniela3477]

Great top

[@KING4aday46]

Mostly, all tensioners have a hole to put in a socket wrench. I've used a crescent wrench on my recent car.

[@RedeemedMechanic]

@@KING4aday46 There is no tensioner. This is a stretch belt, not a serpentine belt.

[@michaeldelrossi4487]

Nice Job in Installing a Belt without Loosing the Idler Pulley

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Stretch belt systems don’t have mechanical tensioners. They are unlike your traditional serpentine belt setup.

[@HandyCreators.]

Installed belt in my car the same way yesterday

[@BAMVR6]

YESSSSS!!!! THANK YOU!!!

[@kennethwoolever5054]

I've used small vicegrips to do this

[@jeangregoryaugustin3575]

Good

[@tomschmidt9923]

Yup- ZIP-TIE Certified! It’s a thing. I’ve got a sticker to prove it.

[@user-be9wi2me3b]

Good job

[@tomwisser953]

Not one person on here says that doing it this way decreases the life of the belt..when putting it on this way you will break the corded fibers inside thus decreasing the longevity of the belt..shortcuts may be easier but not better for your parts replacement

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Actually, someone came along yesterday and said that. And then after I was done patiently explaining that this video is for a specific type of belt called a stretch-belt and not the same thing as a serpentine belt, they deleted their comment. So let me say again, stretch belts are designed to be installed by being pulled over the pulley. Serpentine belts are not. Many people are completely unaware that stretch belts even exist, although they’ve been around for nearly 20 years now. Engineers decided to invent these belts to eliminate the need for tensioners. I don’t care for the design, but it is what it is. The method shown in this video is actually the official Ford procedure for stretch belts now. Other manufacturers suggest using a special clamping tool to hold the belt instead of a zip-tie, but it doesn’t change the method where you are forcing the belt over the pulley. To learn more about stretch belts, you can find a great video by googling “What is a stretch belt?”

[@KingdomKyle08]

Experience wins again!

[@speedguy9982]

Man so easy im struggling to overlap it on the harmonic balancer

[@phillipthethird42]

I never thought of that.

[@user-dk9ww2wi3r]

Just like Grandma use to do it! 👍

[@Straight_White_Fatherly_Figure]

I swear, mine was SO MUCH harder than that on my 5.3L. I had to use a bit more elbow grease.

[@mr_eastmotorsports]

Bravo 🎉

[@ktcarroll4723]

I fought a BMW AC belt for a whole day I wish I had seen this

[@West_Coast_Ganbaru]

I love the concept. I'm in the middle of the Mojave desert trying to source zipties

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Got a shoestring?

[@West_Coast_Ganbaru]

@@RedeemedMechanic you're a maverick and a scholar, de-lacing now.

[@dmlagrange]

Zip ties are the new duct tape

[@h2ostatic424]

Zip ties play a huge role?

[@crustyspaghetti3749]

Love it

[@h2ostatic424]

How do you know when you pulled the. Belt tight enough?

[@Bigboy-v4g]

Will u throw the timing off by doing this

[@JasonClark-xy8pf]

been doing this for years

[@carloszepeda7054]

Old school mechanic telling u just bump the starter lol.. don't turn it on!! Just a little bump😂😂

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Too many cars nowadays don’t let you bump them. They spin for several seconds before stopping. Using the wrench is safer.

[@trickyricky12147]

​@@RedeemedMechanicwtf they don't know? Smh

[@user-mo2cp7kc2t]

It's funny i heard it rip internally.

[@RedeemedMechanic]

😂It’s funny you don’t know what a stretch belt is.

[@JoshHookerJoshhook123]

Most of the time you need like 10x more zip ties

[@albertgaleng]

What are you turning?

[@deltatuning]

Only works by open crankshaft pulley

[@montewright111]

I use a pencil. Works.

[@inspirepar4274]

Smart idea 👍

[@jasonduffee131]

Worked for a ka+, saved £70 on a tool

[@richarddhutchens6359]

Is that a mountain wrench😊

[@alexwhite737]

I have. The dang tool Zip ties work better

[@CharleeD]

This is a genius idea! But every time we move it to get the belt on it comes off the tensioner , any advice ?

[@RedeemedMechanic]

If you have a tensioner, it’s not a stretch belt and this tip really doesn’t apply.

[@user-gi5ux4tn2w]

A got to be on time right

[@mrobvious1100]

I told my boyfriend to just cut the damn belt wrap it around those funny round things then tape it back together....AOC

[@mb50134]

曲軸皮帶輪看似防震盤橡膠出現龜裂。若能一併更換，顧路風險應該會大大降低。

[@Wolfpack310]

That's the instructions from gates 😂 They are written inside the belt package

[@RedeemedMechanic]

And it’s the official way for Ford now. But for years they tried selling us a bunch of tools that never worked well. But I’ve been doing them this way all along.

[@andrewhoyt7734]

Idler pulley is on a swivel bracket use socket to give belt slack to replace.

[@leanderhobb1446]

Will anything happen turning the crank while the engine is off? Thinking about trying this but I’m not sure if you had it park or neutral or something idk. Just curious. I would like to do it like that if it makes it easier. .

[@RedeemedMechanic]

As long as you are turning the engine the correct direction (clockwise) there’s nothing wrong with hand-cranking your engine. With an automatic transmission, you can have it in park. With a manual transmission, you’d need it to be in neutral.

[@jessejuliano5336]

Shame it's not a stretch belt

[@RedeemedMechanic]

The one in the video certainly is.

[@cheesedoesgaming6088]

Works good until it’s the alternator 😂

[@JustMe-pu3xm]

I bet it took him 30 minutes or more to put the zip ties on the belt..He shown the easy part..

[@Dickey66]

Why not just pull the belt tensioner/ idler pulley to relief the tension and side the belt in place

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Because a stretch belt doesn’t have a tensioner. This is not a serpentine belt.

[@Dickey66]

@@RedeemedMechanic sure looks like one

[@RedeemedMechanic]

@@Dickey66 yes, they look similar in the outside, but stretch belts are constructed differently. The cords on a stretch belt are designed with elastic tension, eliminating the need for a mechanical tensioner where serp belts have strong cords and are not meant to stretch at all.

[@user-nb7fs3me4h]

Toyota 1.8?

[@noahadim]

I tried this on my timing belt and it didn't work

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Because a timing belt isn’t a stretch belt?

[@earnestcoleman5938]

I need to ketchup with the times

[@mdnazamuddinch3026]

❤❤

[@ha-dieg_b_e_8227]

Die Glasfaserstränge im Flachriemen sagen Danke und beenden bald ihr Leben, bei Elasto Riemen bitte Spezialwerkzeug verwenden 😮

[@jasongilliland9508]

What a waste of zip ties

[@Cruzzi01]

This helps a lot but I need help removing a belt without a tensioner

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Stretch belts are supposed to be one-time use. You can walk them off using a similar method though. Just put 3 or four cable-ties on the balancer only, walk them under the belt to protect it from tearing, then pry the belt over in that spot while turning the crank. The stressed part of the belt hits the cable tie instead of the sharp edge of the pulley.

[@cgorky]

@@RedeemedMechanicOr just cut the old belt off.

[@allkindz6792]

​@cgorky might as well. Gotta replace it while your at it.

[@xxxx7451]

a tensioner vote

[@deluxe1of1]

Why not just loosen the tension on the alternator???😂😂😂

[@RedeemedMechanic]

Why not read the comments? 😂😂😂There is no tensioner. It’s a stretch belt system. Not a traditional serpentine belt.

[@MrNisaar2.0]

👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@thehoyaho]

Change your KZbin name to GOD

[@johncasperrazeus2449]

you missing with the timing belt thats dangerous

[@RedeemedMechanic]

🤣

[@bryanduran7022]

This just made by belt snap😭😭

[@RedeemedMechanic]

I’m guessing it wasn’t a stretch belt then. So many people don’t read the title of this video.