How to Replace the Serpentine Belt in a Mitsubishi Galant

The serpentine belt or main drive belt winds through your car's engine area. Mitsubishi Galants generally have two separate drive belts to power accessories. One drives the water and power steering pumps; the other drives the alternator and AC compressor. It is necessary to move one belt to replace the other, so go ahead and replace both at once. Mitsubishi recommends checking every 15,000 miles or 17 months for potential replacement.

Instructions

1

Look at where the drive belts are located on your Mitsubishi Galant. Depending on models, you may need to jack up the vehicle to access the bolts for the belts.

2

Find the bolt assembly for the belt. This bolt structure will be on or near the main component that the belt serves. Look at all of the pulleys around which the belt winds, and you will find a bolt system to adjust tension. For an alternator belt, the bolt system is by the alternator. For a power steering belt, look near the power steering pump.

3

Find the lock nut that holds the long adjustment bolt in place and use your wrench to loosen it. This is the bolt the loosens the belt tension so that you can remove it.

4

Turn the adjustment bolt. Turning the adjustment bolt moves the component either toward the engine in order to loosen belt tension, or away from the engine in order to tighten belt tension.

5

Slip off the old belt and install the new one, once the belt tension is released. Make sure the belt is correctly seated on all pulleys.

6

Turn the adjustment bolt the other way to bring the component away from the engine and add belt tension. Test the belt for correct tension by pressing on it and checking deflection.

7

Tighten the adjustment lock bolt and the pivot bolt, when the belt has the right tension.