How to change a serpentine belt: My nightmare 2011 Malibu EcoTech

Link to this belt: amzn.to/2Fl2DqF
This was supposed to be a fun easy video on how to change a serpentine belt, but it turned out to be way more frustrating than it should have been.

[@MichaelBolgiano]

Just got done doing this. Never cursed so much in my life.

[@GearheadDaily]

Right????

[@napierdelticdiesel]

Just did this job on a 2012 Malibu. I remover the entire airbox assembly to give myself more leverage. I removed the passenger side front wheel, removed the plastic clips to the inner wheel shroud enough to pull it back and open up the area to the Harmonic Balancer. I then used a 3/8" ratchet on the tensioner along with a long box-end wrench on the ratchet handle to give me added leverage when slackening the tensioner. This is not an easy job, but very frustrating, but eventually with both arms deeply embedded into the engine side you'll get it done. I wish my serpentine belt remover had a ratchet feature, but it doesn't, so I had to improvise. Check the tensioner pulley too while your in there for any noises. Get some good work lights as things are dark in there.

[@GearheadDaily]

Thanks for the suggestions :)

[@djenn434]

I did this from top with nothing other then removing air box. Took 15 minutes in the snow.

[@Matthew-nq7du]

Agreed support the motor and remove the engine mount. Bunch more room and 30 mins if you are taking your time.

[@WhosJay]

@@djenn434 savage XD

[@Poop-nu1so]

thanks for telling us what car this is. because you told us what car this is, it really helps us know how to change a belt in this particular car. thanks again for telling us what car this was for, it was very helpful to know. p.s. I really appreciate knowing that this will help me fix cars like this, because you told me what kind of car this was for.

[@GearheadDaily]

It's a 2011 Chevy Malibu.

[@GearheadDaily]

Thanks for the feedback, I changed the title.

[@TheBlorchKnows]

Dude, thanks so much. I'm not a gear head at all and I was able to do this fairly easily thanks to this video. I would've been totally lost otherwise.

[@GearheadDaily]

TheBlorchKnows glad it helped! Please sub if you can.

[@billw.4842]

Yes the headlight was a pain, But taking the serpintine belt off was easy. This video did help especially the advice to use the 3/8in ratchet. I hope to put the belt back on in a few days when I determine I can just replace the timing chain. If the chain jumped a tooth and bent a valve or something disintergrated and sent metal through out the motor I wont need to finish using this video. The removal does go a little easier if you remove the whole airbox, I bet it helps putting the new one on also.

[@GearheadDaily]

Hey every little bit helps :)

[@night2night3]

If you think this is hard... try changing a headlight bulb!!

[@GearheadDaily]

Right? Friggin bumper removal

[@ivanvl1185]

I just did that today! It's annoying

[@shasan8272]

Did that like two months ago. Working on a 2012 malibu you want to sell your 2012 Malibu.

[@alfakrab6134]

Selling the vehicle bc of this fuckery...

[@reycampista4754]

Yup, worst vehicle configuration

[@alanbrooks3670]

Throughout this video all that was actually shown was the struggle and tuggle of how difficult it was to get ur belt back on never showing the real process of changing the belt the clips and clamps where the 3/8 ratchet goes not exactly helpful just seen how frustrated you were so I decided to not change it myself and have a friend who grumbled as much as you did, do it for me thanks again

[@GearheadDaily]

YEP! I should have had someone else do it LOL

[@gregrademacher2995]

Here is an easy trick to move the tensioner. Make a loop of strong cord about 3 ft. in circumference. Loop the cord under the tensioner pulley so that you are rearward of the pulley. By putting a screwdriver through the loop to create a handle and using both hands you will be able to pull straight up to relieve the pressure of the tensioner. Put the belt on the drive pulley and compressor pulley and with a friend pulling up on the tensioner, put the belt over the alternator pulley. With this method you do not need to remove anything except the filter cover and engine intake beauty cover.

[@GearheadDaily]

What if you don't have any friends?

[@sevendyseven4090]

Or on the side of the road by yourself..

[@mcdonald2037]

I totally agree i just finish doing mine... I did mine on a SAAB 9-3 ... I put the wrong tensioner in my case i got the one it worked but it went bad quick because i used an automatic didn't knew about but i learned it. I use a jack a wood stick and a 5/8 ratchet... .. they have to go inside sometimes some of the ribs might be on top and the pulley... Woah woah no need for black magic.. it took me two days cause i replace the pulley and i had to align it

[@GearheadDaily]

They do seem to make it as difficult as possible sometimes.

[@mpbrown18]

My wife has a 2009 Malibu and twice I've driven it up on ramps and changed the belt from under the car. It involves you crawling below and going back up top a few times but seems much easier than taking the entire airbox apart. May have taken me 20 mins once on the ramps.

[@GearheadDaily]

I wondered if that was an option. Thanks

[@pjcb]

What was your process?

[@mpbrown18]

@@pjcb same as above but from the bottom. Airbox stays intact.

[@mrl3044]

Hard i had the old one out and new one in it took me about 30 minutes if you take the plastic cover off the engine and the air box out there's room for days

[@GearheadDaily]

Aye

[@momoelias8724]

Why you didn't remove completely the air filter box?

[@GearheadDaily]

It didnt appear at the time to give me an advantages

[@nickroberts3659]

Cuz some people shouldn’t work on cars lmao

[@jimjam742]

damn, now i'm glad i threw one of those cheap ebay pod intakes on there, the job only took me like 3 minutes 🤣

[@GearheadDaily]

Good for... you?

[@alexsexoticpets746]

Hows the cheap eBay intake working? I'm thinking of getting one for mine

[@jimday9720]

Need to change one on a 2014 but can't find videos for that year. Is it the same set up as 2012

[@GearheadDaily]

I believe so.

[@AngelMartinez-wf3iu]

This is easy. What about the hybrid ??

[@mattm8931]

Don't remove the airbox do the job from behind the passrnger front wheel. Its 1000 times easier.

[@GearheadDaily]

I remember from this job that the front wheel didnt provide any extra room. The inner fender was solidly in the way

[@freddyhaza1377]

Hahaha bro it was one of the fastest if not the easiest serp belt i have done. Take off the wheel and the black plastic covers to get the band back in the right position.

[@GearheadDaily]

Congrats.

[@musketbal]

Keep the old one as a back up.

[@doe4369]

Need help on it in 317

[@AFatherToTheFatherless]

What engine is this smh

[@GearheadDaily]

Ecotech 2.2 I believe.

[@TheFruitingChamber]

I need freaking help i dont find anything online i cant see where the 3/8th would go on the tensioner at all and i cant find anything that will work to compress spring :c shop wants 600 and i work on my own cars...

[@GearheadDaily]

The 3/8 hole is there on the tensioner itself. Shine some light on it and you'll see it, its a little buried but its there.

[@napierdelticdiesel]

The 3/8" hole is halfway between the pulley and the tensioner body.

[@Lunarphantom99]

Use Google look up your belt diagram, look for the alternator pully cuz you know where that's at, now trace it back to your pully, work your tool in that area until you latch in

[@doe4369]

Need this done to my 2010 Chevy Malibu and the pully is spinning

[@GearheadDaily]

What do you mean its spinning? the pulley is supposed to spin on the belt.

[@MegaHugro]

Yeh for sure Pain in the Ass, and the Serpentine Belt kits SUCK and won't work, and my 3/8" ratchet was too short. I had the wheel off so I stuck a 10" piece of pipe under the damn pulley and set my floor jack to push it up. Worked great. I am going to Harbor Freight tomorrow and return the Serpentine Kit and buy a 3/8" ratcheting breaker bar for future jobs since I have 2 cars with this confounding engineering marvel.

[@GearheadDaily]

Have you changed a headlight yet? LOL it sucks equally.

[@MalindoWe]

Clear video recording helps better than talk

[@GearheadDaily]

True, it was hard to get images of the inside it was so tight.

[@HandyTim]

If you remove the engine mount the job is much easier

[@THEODINOFFICIAL]

Pretty sure it’s easier to go from the wheel well on this…….

[@GearheadDaily]

It wasn't, i promise

[@Lunarphantom99]

Take out the whole airbox

[@GearheadDaily]

It didn't look to me like that would make enough room.

[@ronaldcaldwell5722]

I'm going to tell you the truth I have never done one of these and I am not a mechanic I am an old school mechanic and chrislynn is that air conditioner guy one time I tried to replace this belt now we would have had put a clutch and all that on the air compressor and we start to put it back together that tools free hundred dollars and there's all kinds of homemade ones all over the internet I used a tool that I got from my great-great-grandfather a C-clamp 5 inch and it worked the first time what you got to do is though you got to put the belt on the top completely put your thigh 15-inch Ranch on the other tensioner class that stick that Big Spring all the way down with C-clamp put your 15 millimeter socket on the tensioner and somebody on the bottom you bring that tensioner all the way back and they slip it on with your hand you let it go and then you release the 5 inch C-clamp Ronald Caldwell

[@GearheadDaily]

I don't think I would have ever thought about doing that.

[@TheFruitingChamber]

Help me :c where does the 15 mm go i dont see a slot like all other tensioners ive seen

[@Anonymous-it5jw]

If you had used punctuation a few times, it would have really helped me understand what you trying to say about using the old 5” C-Clamp trick.

[@alfakrab6134]

I'm over GMs bs ... will never own a gm again.

[@GearheadDaily]

cool story