The Stickman

Found this quite by accident. The engine and car don't seem to be anything really special. But the guy does have a working serpentine belt set up. He says in the comments that he uses what we all thought would work. Looks pretty stock.

firefrost gold

What is the reason you would want one ?

The Stickman

Why does that matter? Lots of Olds people have wanted to do this for a long time.

firefrost gold

Dont take the question out of context stickman . I ask for the sake of learning and insite. So again why would you want to do the swap out ? Is it the cool factor for a resto mod ? Is it I can get belts cheaper ? or is it you dont know either and people just want to do it so you posted it ?

70cutty

There is a lot of guys running serpentine setup.
Here is one of the ways to do it.

http://realoldspower.prophpbb.com/to...lit=serpentine

cjsdad

Serpentine belt systems are more effecient. They have a larger cross section, they are much more flexible so are less parasitic on power, they last a LOT longer than v-belts, and they hardly ever squeek. If the system is built and installed correctly there is never a need to re-tension the belt because the tensioner keeps constant pressure on it. The belts will not twist under high RPM loads. There are more advantages that I can't think of right now but that is a big enough list to show that the serpentine belt systems can be better than the old v-belt systems. Newer is not always better, but I for one believe that this time it is. Definitely not right for a restoration, but a resto-rod, or modernized engine compartment would look nice with one.

The Stickman

Sorry I was so quick to rush to judgement. CJSDAD explained it pretty well but I might add a few things. It is a ton easier to change belts. No trying to line up the darn hole in the PS pump pulley. Also you can use a newer lighter LS type PS pump.

Octania

then again, when the ONE belt breaks.... or FALLS OFF.... your driving fun STOPS.

Go look up Dodge Caravan belt problem on the internet.

Ours got so that the slightest bit of moisture and the belt would fly off.
No water pump
No PS
done driving
Any mud puddle would kill the car
In MI there is ALWAYS a puddle
typically it was in the slush in the middle of an intersection.

Special $120 dual sided belt and grooved idler required to solve the problem.

New tensioner ($50) did NOT solve the problem.

Like many newer things- wonderful WHILE WORKING, then total PITA when not.

firefrost gold

So far the power adder in the form of a blower seems to be the big draw i did seen one the other day , it put the blower belt out really far .

steve442

I would carry a spare belt then, My 2006 Caravan has had ZERO issues with the belt, In fact the only problem I have ever had with a serp system is tensioners going out after well over 100k.

Koda

I'll throw in. V belt cross section (all three sides) is not that far off from a serp belt bottom edge. Going to call BS on the less parasitic loss, a properly balanced V belt setup would put less radial load on the crank. I've seen belts last a long time of both varieties, you may be right on that one, and the squeak, which I don't mind.

However, there are a lot of disadvantages to serp belts. Useless idlers, expensive tensioners, and losing one pulley means your car is now dead. There is a reason v-belts double up on the water pump, as that is the only critical accessory. AC and power steering can die fine, and the alt dying will at least net you 30 more miles or so. But, lose anything on the serp belt and it's all gone.

I would think a v belt system, with better redundancy and less parts to fail, and less chance of catastrophic failure, would be worth the extra maintenance (very little) it requires to people on here. I'd understand someone wanting a serp setup if they didn't work on their cars, but not us.

cjsdad

[QUOTE=Koda;734024]I'll throw in. V belt cross section (all three sides)(v-belts are not designed to ride in the bottom of the groove so no contact on the bottom of the belt. The grooved side of a serp. belt provides almost 4X the surface area of a flat belt.) is not that far off from a serp belt bottom edge. Going to call BS on the less parasitic loss, a properly balanced V belt setup would put less radial load on the crank. (Take a couple v-belts and flex them back and forth, now flex a serp. belt. The parasitic loss from the belts is much lower with the serp.) I've seen belts last a long time of both varieties, you may be right on that one,(the serpentine belt on my 95 Dodge 2500 lasted 197K miles! Never seen a v-belt do that.) and the squeak, which I don't mind.

However, there are a lot of disadvantages to serp belts. Useless idlers, expensive tensioners, and losing one pulley means your car is now dead. There is a reason v-belts double up on the water pump, (v-belts are doubled up for traction and secondary accessories, not redundancy, but you can't remove all unnecessary serpentine belts at the track! ) as that is the only critical accessory. AC and power steering can die fine, and the alt dying will at least net you 30 more miles or so. But, lose anything on the serp belt and it's all gone.

I would think a v belt system, with better redundancy and less parts to fail, and less chance of catastrophic failure, would be worth the extra maintenance (very little) it requires to people on here. I'd understand someone wanting a serp setup if they didn't work on their cars, but not us.(constant maintenance would provide early detection of belt failure either way)[/QUOTE]

Oldsmaniac

To do an Olds water pump 307 equipped or similar with A.I.R really sucks. If the serpentine system eliminates the need to loosen 4 belts and their operating components, i am in for it!

Koda

Not looking for an argument, so I'll bow out of this one.

69ho aurora

I had always thought about trying to use the factory serpentine system from the '82 v6 Cutlass diesel I had. It looked like it should have bolted right onto the front of a gas Olds v8. I dropped a DX block gas engine in it, but never got around to finishing it or trying the belt swap.

Did any other Olds v6/v8 engines come with a factory serpentine system?

Octania

I think the V6 diesel is it
be sure to use the correct reversed water pump.

chasisjr

allyolds68

I've been running a factory belt set up for years and I've never eaten a belt. Belts get eaten on Oldsmobile engines because people put the wrong crank pulley/waterpump/power steering pump/ AC combinations on them