How do you change the serpentine belt on a Chevy Beretta?

Answer 1

Caveat: You may prefer to have this procedure done professionally, but if you're strapped for cash this how you can do it. first you will need a jack, a block of wood, a length of rope, and a good socket set with extender and deep well sockets. Jack your beretta up, take of the passenger front wheel and remove the lower right shroud under your wheel well...this will expose the tensioner pulley which is impossible to get to otherwise. place your tire on its side underneath your car which u can use as a jackstand if you need to (i did). Next you will have to put the jack under your motor with the wood block to increase its surface area and also protect your engine from damage. once you are supporting the engine from underneath, you will need to remove the engine mount on the left side of the engine. there are around 10 bolts to remove this. once done you will now need to pull your engine forward. you can just grab it and pull really hard and it will rock ( do NOT rock your car of the jack ) i took a rope and with one guy leaning the engine forward i tied the rope from the hook on top of the engine to a nearby chainlink fence which i tied it off too and it held it just fine. With the engine in place now you must all but remove your alternator. once this is done it is now possible to get the belt on although it will take 2 guys one to loosen and push on the tensioner pulley the other to pull on the belt and get it in place while the first guy releases the tension on the belt. once you have it in place tighten your tensioner pulley back up, tighten your alternator back on, and slowly let your engine loose to its original position. now you will have to pull it forward by hand once you have reassembled your mounting bracket and bolt it back in place. let the jack down off your engine. replace the shroud under your wheel.jack up your car so you can put your tire back on. replace the wheel, let her down and start her up! chances are you are now beat down and upset, but your car works fine. this procedure is difficult, trying, and time consuming. Chevy Berettas are good cars but when you stick a huge engine in a little car body this is what you get. My serpentine belt was original to the car and lasted approximately 120,000 miles before it split and shredded without warning. For the record this engine is also found on Chevy Luminas, Olds Cutlass Supremes, and Pontiac Grand Prixs and are designed to be serviced by the dealer and to be next to impossible to get any work done easily on. thank the powers that be that they are pretty reliable. GOOD LUCK. A shop quoted me at $90 to fix this. if you have the money, DO IT! if not then do this. it worked for me. You don't NEED to do the above. Just use a crowbar and stretch the belt on against the alternator. The tensioner will move with the pressure created. It takes about 2 minutes doing it this way. This answer is for the 2.2l 4 cyl. engine. TO ANSWER this you need to be clear on what engine you have... Both answers above have some merit. If it is a Beretta with the 3.1 ltr (M) engine you need to support the motor from under and remove the engine mount bracket. If not and you have the 3.1ltr (T) engine you can use normal procedures ( you might have to remove a belt guard on some models) but just by using the tensioner pully you can remove the belt and put one on. The Vin (M) engine is a pain.