hiac

Hello,

I posted an issue with my 02 Honda Civic grinding noise a while ago (
https://www.civicforums.com/forums/3...ml#post4723566 ). At that time, turn on/off AC has no effect on the noise.

Last week, I took the car to mechanic and they replace the alternator, alternator belt. They said compressor belt is not good either, so I replace it too. And since then, I heard a different noise, much louder, but only happened when I turn on AC, particularly when I cold start the car in the morning, or parking car on driveway for a few hours then drive the car into garage later. I replaced the whole AC system 3 years ago. When I turn on AC, every 15-20 seconds I hear a "metal click" then fan is running for 5-10 seconds then off, then the whole cycle restart again. The belt noise happened right after the "metal click".

audio recording:
video recording:
My immediate suspect is compressor belt since noise is related to A/C only, but could alternator belt has issue ( such as loosing belt) and cause the noise?

I am going to take the car back to the shop but want to educate myself first for the possible cause. Last week when I change the alternator and belts, I want to do a test drive first, but the owner don't allow me, insist me paying first... I'd like to prepare myself

Thank you!

ezone

The alternator and the AC compressor share the same belt.

That belt is not adjusted correctly, it is too loose.
Inspect condition and if okay, adjust it tighter (or have your installer adjust it tighter).

It must be adjusted tight enough to not scream under any condition.

If it's been doing this for a significant amount of time, the belt can suffer excessive wear and damage.

Wankenstein

Sounds like the a/c tensioner pulley is shot, or belt is too loose. Either way ..the shop probably didn't tension it correctly.

ezone

SOME aftermarket belts may stretch significantly after they have been 'run in', so readjustment is often necessary shortly after installation.
One more reason I prefer OE parts, LOL


(The D17Ax engines do not use a tensioner pulley for the two accessory belts.)

Wankenstein

Thanks Ezone. I will know these things when I change my mom's D17 timing belt sometime in the future. Makes it easy to narrow down that noise w/o a tensioner.

hiac

Hello ezone,

Thank you very much for your reply. I took the car to the shop, they said 02 honda civic has a manual tensioner (not the automatic one), so they re-tighten it. I drove home and didn't hear the noise. I just open the hood, and notice the power steering fluid reservoir is not clip in, so it hanging there. This shop is just doing lousy job.

I drove for about 200 miles since the belt replacement. I turned on AC for total maybe half an hour in past week, it's not hot most of day... When it's local driving and I heard the noise, I turn AC off right away. On highway it's hard to say because it's noisy anyway.

i wonder if belt could suffer excessive wear and damage? I didn't notice any cracks, but my eyes are not trained either... I took some photo, http://imgur.com/a/wNOR3, to best of your knowledge, you feel the belt looks Ok?

Many thanks!

hiac

Hi Megalodong,

Thank you for your input. I took the shop, they said they tighten tensioner. noise is gone. Hopefully it will hold

ezone

The two belts are manually adjusted.
However,
Adjustment of the alternator/compressor belt is accomplished by repositioning the alternator.
It's lower bracket is slotted (see near letter C) so it can be moved as needed to attain the desired belt tension. There is a "jack bolt" (E) that may be used to assist with moving the alternator.




The PS reservoir was moved in order to reach the fasteners for the alternator.

I sure hope they got the alternator bolts tight again.
Guess what can happen if they forgot

hiac

Hi ezone,

As always, Thank you very much for your input.

a/b/c/d/e, which one is alternator bolts, I will see if my finger can reach it to test if it's tight.

Many thanks!

ezone

B and C secure the alternator

D secures the slotted bracket to the engine block

hiac

Hi ezone,

Many thanks! I use finger to feel the alternator and feel it's not moving.

I have a engine light on today, "P0133 HONDA O2 Sensor Circuit Slow Response Bank 1 Sensor 1". When car started has issue, all kind of issue start to pop up

Many thanks for your help!

ezone

That is probably just a failing sensor.

Erase the code, see how long before it returns?

Wrenches should have been used to check the hardware is torqued properly.

Sakib Kamal

Hey guys,
I'm having the same issue with my 2005 D15B non-Vtec ES1. If I turn on the A/C right after I start the Engine, it screeches like hell between 1.5k- 3k Rpm. It doesn't screech when idling. However, after engine gets to optimum temperature the screech goes away, OR after driving the car more spiritedly after a while the screech stops.
Is it because of the tension on the belt being loose?
Right now I am forced to turn on the A/C only when engine is at operating temp. But it's kind of annoying... Will it damage my A/C compressor if I just floor the pedal until the screech goes away?

ezone

It can damage the belt.


A belt, yes, most likely. I'm not familiar with the belt setup on that particular engine.....

If the AC and the alternator both share a single belt, it's probably in need of additional tension adjustment.

If the alternator and AC units use individual belts, each belt should be checked. The alternator belt might be the one needing additional tension.