Vehicle: 2009 Nissan Murano, AWD, V6-3.5L (VQ35DE), Continuously Variable Transmission/Transaxle

Mileage: 166,232 Miles

Problem: This vehicle came to the shop with a shredded serpentine drive belt. The customer had recently replaced the old belt and tensioner because it just looked a little worn out.

Case Details: The first thing the technician did was to put his laser alignment tool on the accessory pulleys to see if the belt was tracking correctly. It was tracking OK, so he replaced the belt. When he started the engine and the belt was cold, it immediately jumped 1-2 grooves on the alternator pulley inwards toward the engine.

He tried installing a different alternator but that didn’t fix the problem. Next, he tried a different power steering pump and upper idler pulley only to get the same results.

An ALLDATA Tech-Assist consultant suggested rechecking all the accessory mount bolts and brackets, pulley alignment and the tension of the tensioner pulley. If all those items were good, he advised replacing the belt with an OEM part.

Confirmed Repair: Everything looked good, so the technician replaced the belt with an OEM part. That was it. He did notice that the OEM belt seemed drier and stiffer. It did not walk off the alternator pulley at any RPM. Easy fix to a weird problem!