Belt Shred after Fuel Filter Replacement

[SChen]

04. 5 Dually with 58,000 miles. I replaced the fuel filter, doing it myself for the first time. I used some directions from another site that worked out pretty well, until it came to starting the truck. It said the best way to refill the fuel filter canister was to bump the starter until you heard the lift pump go silent, do it once more, and start the truck. Everything went to plan, truck started right up after doing the bump thing, then I heard a flap flap flap noise, shut it down and saw that my belt was shredding. :{ So, i got it replaced but now I'm wondering if the two starter bumps caused the belt to slip or if it was just an amazing coincidence. And if it did cause the belt to slip, is there a better way to prime the system?



Thanks - Scott

 

[F-15I Ra'am]

I'd say it's just a bad coincidence, some of these trucks have a history of shedding belts.

 

[SChen]

I'd say it's just a bad coincidence, some of these trucks have a history of shedding belts.

Thanks-I saw that on a search, but the belt shredding problem seemed to be fairly low mile events, I bought this truck with 25K and it now has 58K. I don't know the normal service life of a belt, my Subaru had everything done on it's major 60,000 mile service, so maybe that is all that can be expected from a belt. I was more concerned with the bump start making the belt slip as I'll eventually be replacing the fuel filter sometime in the future and didn't want it to be an issue.



Scott

 

[JHardwick]

I just replaced my factory belt at 160,000 miles. It didn't look back, but I travel a lot and was getting nervous.

 

[RJOL]

Scott... I think you just got unlucky. I've been changing fuel filters since 2000 (on both my 2001 and my 2005 CTD) and have always used the "bump" to get fuel into the empty canister. Never had a problem. By the way... Carrying an extra belt is just cheap insurance...

 

[Elite1]

Are you sure you didn't leave a tool of some sort on the fan shroud or on the valve cover? A screwdriver falling into the belt could shred it!

 

[cerberusiam]

The problem seems to be with just bumping the starter or backing off the key before the starter gets up to speed and the slack taken out of the belt. The compression kicks back and throws slack in the belt and it will jump a groove or 2 on the bottom pulley. Mine had done it a couple of times on an aborted start. From what the dealer tech's say it's a pretty common occurence.

 

[swexlin]

I was an "early mile" belt shred victim (5400 miles), I now check it weekly.



I think it is that bottow right pulley that's the problem, not much room for error now.



Someone here posted a while back that there is an internal memo (not quite a TSB) to the techs on this - if these shred, they are supposed to replace one of the pullies with a clutched pulley, to help prevent slippage when it chirps on shutdown, etc.

 

[swexlin]

Mine had done it a couple of times on an aborted start. From what the dealer tech's say it's a pretty common occurence

Something else to watch out for, then. For being "bulletproof" engines, these things sure have some weak links.



How many average Joe Blows are going to look for this?

 

[SChen]

The problem seems to be with just bumping the starter or backing off the key before the starter gets up to speed and the slack taken out of the belt. The compression kicks back and throws slack in the belt and it will jump a groove or 2 on the bottom pulley. Mine had done it a couple of times on an aborted start. From what the dealer tech's say it's a pretty common occurence.

Does anyone know how fast the belt would shred under those circumstances? This was pretty immediate, probably no more than 2-3 seconds at idle. The belt lost maybe an eight of an inch on it's forward edge.



I also thought that I might have left a tool in the engine bay, but all are accounted for, I didn't hear any bangs, unless it was thrown clear with the hood being open. Maybe a tool from a previous repair, who knows...



In any case, I'm ordering a spare belt from Genos. I have a couple cross country trips this summer, so I don't need the headache of being stranded in the middle of nowhere.



Scott

 

[klenger]

In the future, there shouldn't be any need to bump the starter on a 3rd gen. The fuel system is self priming. Turn the key to the run position and wait for around 30 seconds or so and then start normally. I think the "bump the starter" thing was a 2nd gen procedure.

 

[MFalkinham]

In the future, there shouldn't be any need to bump the starter on a 3rd gen. The fuel system is self priming. Turn the key to the run position and wait for around 30 seconds or so and then start normally. I think the "bump the starter" thing was a 2nd gen procedure.

Just turning the key to run will activate the lift pump for only a few seconds. Bumping the starter activates it for around 20 seconds. You can purge the air from the fuel lines without bumping the starter by doing it the way you suggested, but it will take several more on/off cycles.

 

[JHardwick]

I don't bump my starter and it primes just fine.

 

[RJOL]

In the future, there shouldn't be any need to bump the starter on a 3rd gen. The fuel system is self priming. Turn the key to the run position and wait for around 30 seconds or so and then start normally. I think the "bump the starter" thing was a 2nd gen procedure.

Ken... You might be right. I can tell you that when I bump the starter, I can hear the pump run in the tank. It stops after about 15 seconds.