Chrysler serpentine belt

This page can help solve Chrysler serpentine belt problems that are common on both cars and mini vans. Included is the belt diagram and details about the enhancement kit now available. I am also including information from a technical service bulletin on how to fix it for good.

The 3.3 L and 3.8 L engines are the ones that have the most problems with the engine belt coming off. The model years affected is 1996 through 2001. The vehicles that have this engine option installed are some of the most popular ever built. I have added belt diagrams for other popular engines. Here is a link to the Chrysler V8 belt diagram for the 3.9L 5.2L 5.9L.

The belt diagram for the 3.0, 3.3L and 3.8 Liter V6 is directly below! Now lets get back to the Dodge V6 with the issue and an important tip for doing the job. The Chrysler town and country, Dodge Caravan and Voyager are some of the most popular vehicles ever produced.

In my opinion this problem is not limited to minivans. If you have a 3.0L 3.3 liter or 3.8L v6 in any Chrysler vehicle this kit can be the solution for the belt popping off or squeak noise at low rpm. I say any vehicle because the kit is advertised for minivan owners.

It will fit most cars with these engines that fall within the range. If you are a Caravan owner then you might have seen your belt come off when the van goes through a deep puddle or heavy snow. This serpentine belt kit solves the problem for good.

I have installed this kit on several vehicles with good results. What solves the belt coming off problem is the ridge or guide on the new included pulleys. This feature also makes the new belt harder to install.

For this reason I do recommend getting the special serpentine belt tool to give you the leverage needed to fully disengage the tensioned spring. This assures you will get just enough slack to squeeze the ribbed side of the belt over the guide.

Overall I have had little experience with Mopar products. But my neighbor has a Chrysler town and country SE with a 3.8 L engine. We live in Florida and experience extremely heavy rains and some minor flooding in our area during rainy season.

Every time my neighbor's minivan would go through a deep puddle it would take off the engine belt. Before discovering the gates solution kit and reinstalling it several times as well as replacing the serpentine belt along with the standard off the shelf tensioner this problem continued.

Chrysler serpentine belt TSB

If there is one thing I can't stand it is having a comeback after an auto repair that I was very careful with and performed to the best of my ability. This being my neighbor's vehicle I definitely tried my hardest to perform a quality repair. I used name brand parts and took my time installing them.

This did me absolutely no good because after a heavy rain my neighbor would walk up my driveway and say hey my engine belt came off. After reinstalling the serpentine belt I checked for pulley alignment and problems associated with belt tension. I checked how the belt was tracking and it looked okay.

I went to work and checked through All-Data's technical service publications related to Chrysler serpentine belt problems. Wow there is a ton of technical service bulletins on the Chrysler 3.3 Liter and 3.8 Liter engines for the model years 1996 through 99.

After reading through the bulletins I was left with the impression that I'm glad I bought a Chevrolet. I don't have time to go through all of the bulletins because this would be as thick as a phone book so I will stay on track and just discuss the Chrysler serpentine belt problem.

Engine belt misalignment

In my opinion one design defect of the engine compartment is that the underside is completely open and allows water and snow to be thrown up inside and over the engine drive belt. The small splash shield underneath does not divert the water that well. But a new belly pan is not part of the technical service bulletin.

engine belt diagram image

Note: that Gates drive belts came up with an Enhancement Solution Kit ( available below ) that is easier to install then following the repair bulletin from Chrysler. The solution kit still takes some work and might not be right for all driveway mechanics depending on skill level.

The factory recommended repair ( at the time of this writing ) is the replacement of the idler pulley and the pulleys retaining bracket. In the TSB I read, Chrysler's engineers have decided that on some models the idler pulley is misaligned by .08 inches. This is why I could not see the misalignment with my naked eye.

An updated engine bracket and pulley assembly is available at your local Chrysler parts department. This job is not highly technical, but is time-consuming. You will have to take a lot of stuff off to gain access to the engine brackets retaining bolts. This may not be a very good driveway or do-it-yourself auto repair.

After replacing the engine bracket and the idler pulley and also installing a new Chrysler serpentine drive belt I found out about the Gates Enhancement kit. So I did it the hard way by following the TSB.

The good news is I have not seen my neighbor since. And when I make this statement these repairs were actually done about eight months ago at the beginning of the Florida rainy season.

The Chrysler town and country has driven through puddles that they should have turned around and not gone through. But yet the belt is staying on. In my opinion this repair has solved the Chrysler serpentine belt problem. So follow either method or take it to a dealer, putting the belt back on is not good enough.

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