Serpentine Belt

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Ruger

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I'm curious because I've never owned a vehicle with as powerful an engine as the 6.2L...

What's the likely useful life of the serpentine belt?
 

SVT_4X4

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On a non-supercharged engine, nothing special on the belt from any other vehicle as far as wear. I have heard from 3 to 10 cracks per inch needs replacement. Once I start seeing cracks in the belt and if it is 4 years old, I replace it. For my Raptor with the Supercharger, I replace a few a year because of the heat.
 
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Ruger

Ruger

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I still have some V-belt dressing in the garage. I wonder if that would extend the life of a serpentine belt?
 

SVT_4X4

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I still have some V-belt dressing in the garage. I wonder if that would extend the life of a serpentine belt?

I would not use that on a serpentine belt. They are pretty easy to replace, and would always recommend doing it before it broke if at all possible.
 
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Ruger

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Oh yeah, I'm with you on the ease of replacement. In fact I have a Gates Racing serpentine belt for the Raptor already in hand. I figure I'll install it at 50,000 miles and call it good. But being something of a maintenance nut, I wonder if something can't be done to extend the life of a serpentine belt.
 

Badrap

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I still have some V-belt dressing in the garage. I wonder if that would extend the life of a serpentine belt?

Mine was Really cracked so I ruled that out. Maybe if I had dressed it sooner. I already have a new belt in the upswings for the new Girl and she only has 7,900 miles. Paranoid? Nope and maybe, just a Boy Scout! Ha!!
Battery will get changed at 35,000 just for the record. I've had two in the past 20+ trucks conk out around then.
 
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Ruger

Ruger

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I've gt 47K on my 2011, Badrap. So far, not a hint of trouble out of the battery. Checked the belt real thoroughly today as a result of this conversation, and I couldn't find a single crack. I was surprised, too. I thought I'd find something. That's why I have the Gates Racing belt already. Huh!
 

Badrap

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I've gt 47K on my 2011, Badrap. So far, not a hint of trouble out of the battery. Checked the belt real thoroughly today as a result of this conversation, and I couldn't find a single crack. I was surprised, too. I thought I'd find something. That's why I have the Gates Racing belt already. Huh!

There ya go. I just hate being stranded when simple crap breaks.
At least the belts are easier to change than the good ole bad days!Ha
 

Hockster

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Standard industry belt diagnostics call for replacement of a serpentine belt if it shows three cracks in a three inch section. This is a good rule of thumb for Neoprene, but not so good for EPDM. EPDM belts inherently resist cracking because of the increased elasticity, so a visual check for cracks is not a very good indicator of true belt wear especially since they can run 100,000 miles or beyond with no visual cracks. A far better indicator of wear on EPDM belts is material loss.
 
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