hard start, then squealing

I went to start my 2000 Cherokee Limited as I was leaving the office today, and it cranked for a few seconds without starting. I turned it off, then back on, and after cranking for a second longer than normal, it started up. As it was starting, there was a little squeal from somewhere up front. Then, as I was leaving a friends, it started just fine, however, the same brief quiet squeal was there. Any ideas?

Belt is loose.

I had the same thing with my 01 limited. The belt was fine on mine. At stoplights the volts would drop WAY down under any type of load. So I ended up replacing the alternator and my problem was fixed. Hopefully it is just a loose belt for you though.

My first thought was that it was a loose belt as well, however, would that cause the hard starting?
I hope its not my alt...I don't think it is, as my voltmeter says 14 most of the time.

David,
You are not alone with serpentine belt squealing. There are a bunch of threads in Search on the subject. My '98 has an intermittent s-belt squealing issue. The belt is properly tightened (bought the $13 belt tension gauge from NAPA...highly recommend you get one to check belt tension). It squeals when the AC is turned on, when accelerating, but only for a while. The compressor was changed out last year, so I'm thinking (maybe more like hoping) it is not the compressor clutch or bearing. A mechanic who worked for years at a Chrysler dealership told me it is a fairly common problem on 97-01's and to live with it. That's not an acceptable answer to me. There has to be a fix. The squealing started when I changed the belt about three months ago. I put a good quality NAPA belt on, but I'm wondering if the belt itself is the problem.

I searched, but everything I saw related to the belt squealing until it had warmed up, or because of the A/C. Mine only squeals while the starter is engaged and a second or 2 afterwards.

I'm going to try a Goodyear Gatorback belt this weekend. There's a lot of positive things said about that product in the archive threads. Especially about that brand of belt not squealing like the others.

I had one on my Toyota Celica, which are notorious for squealing due to a poor tensioner design, and it was great. Let me know how it works for you, I will probably do the same if no one else has any ideas on why it only squeals while cranking.

Sand-Dog said:

I'm going to try a Goodyear Gatorback belt this weekend. There's a lot of positive things said about that product in the archive threads. Especially about that brand of belt not squealing like the others.

Click to expand...

That is what I put on when I swapped out my alternator. I have had gatorbacks on my SVT Contour and Tracer LTS also and they work great!!

Had a similar problem on my 98 last winter, the belt was fine. Waited until the spring and it went away. Hasn't came back this winter. I think it's just the starter being slightly out of alignment.

Check and make sure your starter is OK. The same thing happened in my in-laws TJ and it was his starter going bad. If you have been playing in any mud it is real easy to get mud packed in the little drain tube on the bottom. Just tap it with a small mallet and see if any dry mud falls out.