Creature85

Danged 0's, they sometimes manage to sneak past me. When I had the belt off I did spin all the pulleys and the AC pulley spun with the least resistance. Now, I don't how much these pulleys are suppose to spin when working correctly. The power steering and alternator pulleys spun about the same with the most resistance. I don't use my AC either as I believe it has a leak somewhere. If you turn the AC on the Jeep will shudder for a second when the compressor clutch tries to kick on.

dave1123

Just for GPs, pull the plug on your compressor clutch. IDK if it will make a difference, but give it a whirl. The only time your alternator should be hard to turn is when it's under load. The power steering pump is direct coupled so it should show some resistance, that's why it's got a large pulley on it.

The only drag the alternator should have are the brushes. Unless the front bearing is shot, it should spin freely. You should be able to feel a bad bearing by turning it slowly. You'll feel the ***** catching. It spins at a relatively high speed so it could be the problem. Again, the bearing is easy to replace, but most people don't bother. They just buy another alternator. It's only a $2 bearing but a PIA to take apart.

The only other things we haven't covered are the crank pulley and the water pump. I doubt they'd be a problem.

Creature85

I don't feel anything really catch. When I take my finger and flick the pulleys a bit they only rotate for about a 1 second after I let my finger off of them. I was judging the resistance from the compressor pulley to the rest of the pulleys if that makes sense. This may sound stupid but where is the compressor plug located and what would I be trying to accomplish by removing it?

dave1123

Just behind the pulley, there should be a wire connector. This supplys power to the magnet coil that pulls the clutch in. There are brushes that ride on the coil. They may be squeaking, but as I said, IDK if it will make a difference. Actually, forget that. They only rotate when the clutch is engaged.

You can try an old mechanic's trick. When cars used v-belts, sometimes the pulleys would get glazed. We'd take the belts off, sprinkle water on the pulleys, and wait overnight before putting the belts back on. The pulleys would rust up and make the belts grab better. This only worked for a short time. As I recall, vinegar worked better.

Before you changed the belt, were the edges chewed up? this would show misalignment on one of the items driven by it. I had this problem with my Zj because the PO had forgotten to install a bolt in the rear of my power steering pump bracket.

We'll find the culprit. We've just got to keep looking.

Creature85

Oh, an electrical plug! For whatever reason I had it in my head that you were referring to a drain plug. No frays either, just an old dried out cracking belt.

dave1123

You can try scratching up the polish on the pulley with some coarse sandpaper. Not a lot, but it might help.

Creature85

Dave, I just remembered something about before I changed the belt. Before changing the belt I could remember a slight clacking sound coming from the power steering pump area. I didn't think anything of it because I never heard the noise again after the belt was changed. Do you think this means anything or it just happens to be a coincidence?

dave1123

IDK man. I'm just trying to hit you with any and all possibilities. I hate trying to cure a "Summa Time" noise. It gets frustrating. Really!

BTW, I just cured an exhaust pipe rattle on my WJ. I found out I had a broken motor mount. I bought both and it's a good thing because both were broken. What a PIA to change! The book says 3 hours. Hah! try more than twice that.

dave1123

D*** it, Creature! Now MY WJ has an annoying mild screech! It's only on startup and goes away after about a minute, so I'm assuming it the belt. I can barely hear it, but I know it will get worse. It's almost like my truck was reading the forum! Freaky!

Creature85

Lol sorry man. I hope yours doesn't turn into the phantom squeek like mine.

Creature85

Well, I found the issue. It turned out to be my right front brake rubbing on the rotor. Makes sense now that I think about it. Changed all brakes and rotors over the weekend and the noise is completely gone.