How the crap do you guys get your alternator/fan belt on? I got the power steering/fan belt and the a/c belt on easy, but wow this one is a pita. I'm almost afraid I'm gonna ruin my new dayco belt just trying to get it on. Any tips? I'm thinking I may have to unbolt my alternator entirely, then get the belt around everything, then bolt it back up. And yes the belt is the proper size.

the belt may be the proper size but if its a rebuilt alternator it may have a pulley thats bigger than the original, just get a new belt thats a little longer Jim

Did you loosen up bolt alt. bolts?

(one in top that goes through mount and threads into alt., and the one on bottom that goes through mount, then alt., and threads into the head)

If you did that, you will be able to push the alt. all the way down to the bottom end of top bracket.

That should give you the clearance needed

I unbolted the entire alternator as a very last resort. Slipped the belt around everything and the damn thing won't bolt back up. This belt is the same length as the old one. I measured them against each other. This seems like an impossible task now. I've been trying to get it together for the last hour almost. I don't think that there is anything you guys can do to help now. I don't even think there is a tip out there at this point. If there is, let me know.

Take out the "slide" adjusting bolt so that the alternator will move closed to the water pump pulley. Then slip on your belt and use a long screwdriver to pry the alternator back far enough to get the slide bolt back in.

If this does not work, just get a bet that is the next size longer.

Already tried that one Jeff. About a dozen times. Looks like I'm off tomorrow to get a slightly larger belt.

Here's a place where that dressmakers measuring tape the wife has is really useful.
Bolt the alternator on with the slide bolt somewhere in the middle of its range, and wrap the tape around the pulleys. If they don't have the same length, just go a bit smaller. Worke great for getting the right size belt that actually fits.

<font face="Arial,Verdana" size="2">Originally posted by BluEyes:
Here's a place where that dressmakers measuring tape the wife has is really useful.
Bolt the alternator on with the slide bolt somewhere in the middle of its range, and wrap the tape around the pulleys. If they don't have the same length, just go a bit smaller. Worke great for getting the right size belt that actually fits. </font>

Yeah, thats probably how I'll do it when I get home from work. Just get the damn thing exchanged for a slightly longer one. Even after I get her running tonight, I'm still gonna wonder how the hell the old belt ever even got put on. Like I said, it's th same length as this new dayco. Thanks for the help guys.