Serpentine Belt and pulley bearings keep failing
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Joined: Mar 2023
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2011 Mercedes Benz C63 AMG
Serpentine Belt and pulley bearings keep failing
Hi guys, I’ve owned my 2011 C63 since 2020 and for the last 2 years I’ve had problems with the belt coming off and the the pulleys and bearings failing, shredding the belt.
I’ve recently bought the Weistec Billet Pulleys and still am having problems with the belt coming off. Please note I’ve had the alternator and power steering assembly replaced and everything else works (AC, water pump, idlers) and use the OEM belt that I buy from the dealership, and have also tried a continental belt.
I really miss using my car and am afraid of driving it out of town. Please help
I’ve recently bought the Weistec Billet Pulleys and still am having problems with the belt coming off. Please note I’ve had the alternator and power steering assembly replaced and everything else works (AC, water pump, idlers) and use the OEM belt that I buy from the dealership, and have also tried a continental belt.
I really miss using my car and am afraid of driving it out of town. Please help
Junior Member
Joined: Apr 2019
Posts: 63
Likes: 9
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Common fault. I've been through loads. And I installed new pulleys and tried just about every make of belt and a new tensioner.
Precautions are best now, I changed the plastic pipe connection on the thermostat housing to a brass one tapped into the housing, as this is common to be taken out.
And I change the belt regardless of what it looks like around every six months or a couple of thousand of miles. I also keep a spare belt in my boot.
Tell tail signs the belt is close to fail , look on rocker covers etc, you can see small pieces of rubber.
Precautions are best now, I changed the plastic pipe connection on the thermostat housing to a brass one tapped into the housing, as this is common to be taken out.
And I change the belt regardless of what it looks like around every six months or a couple of thousand of miles. I also keep a spare belt in my boot.
Tell tail signs the belt is close to fail , look on rocker covers etc, you can see small pieces of rubber.
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 433
Likes: 583
From: Texas
3.0L Whipple E63 AMG
These cars are known for eating up belts and pulleys.
Couple things I did to prevent any potential failures:
Couple things I did to prevent any potential failures:
- Underdrive billet crank pulley to reduce idler pulley speed + accessories RPM speed.
- Gates RPM high performance belt.
- Replace your idlers once per year depending how hard you drive it.
- Have a spare set of idlers in case you get left stranded somewhere.
- Completely bypass/plug the thermostat bleeder hose. They tend to break easily, and there's already a bleeder hose on the radiator side so no need for 2 of them.
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Joined: Aug 2016
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12 C63BS Magno Alanite Grey, 25 X5 Msport, 08 BMW E93, Ducati Hyper 698
I would carefully inspect any pulleys that are not being replaced (meaning crank balancer, tensioner and all accessory pulleys, water pump, PS, Alternator and AC compressor) carefully, check them all for any damage, any wobble or any alignment issues. Even if new, like the alternator, the pulley could be not running true or slightly out of alignment. I think some of the other accessories when replacing the pulley is reused and depending on how it was removed can be bent or not fully seated on the accessory.
Despite it being a bit common for these cars to throw the accessory belt usually due to idlers getting stiff or worn, yours is excessive for sure and if new idlers have all been done, there is something else in the system that is causing this much more than would be considered normal, so I would be very carefully looking for anything that may not be perfectly aligned.
Also check your belt routing as there are 2 different routing methods floating around the internet and one is more commonly considered to be correct. I think also earlier cars were missing an idler near the crank pulley at the bottom that can be added to address some slack that can happen in that area on the belt.
Despite it being a bit common for these cars to throw the accessory belt usually due to idlers getting stiff or worn, yours is excessive for sure and if new idlers have all been done, there is something else in the system that is causing this much more than would be considered normal, so I would be very carefully looking for anything that may not be perfectly aligned.
Also check your belt routing as there are 2 different routing methods floating around the internet and one is more commonly considered to be correct. I think also earlier cars were missing an idler near the crank pulley at the bottom that can be added to address some slack that can happen in that area on the belt.
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Joined: Dec 2005
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From: NJ
2009 SL63 AMG
Also check your belt routing as there are 2 different routing methods floating around the internet and one is more commonly considered to be correct. I think also earlier cars were missing an idler near the crank pulley at the bottom that can be added to address some slack that can happen in that area on the belt.
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Member
Joined: Jun 2017
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From: Tri citys WA
2011 raptor 2010 C63 AMG P31
A member has addressed this issue I’m sure he will pipe in the weistec pulley bearings are not rated for the speeds they are spinning and you can source the correct ones and just replace them.
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From: Kitchener, ON
2010 C63 AMG
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12 C63BS Magno Alanite Grey, 25 X5 Msport, 08 BMW E93, Ducati Hyper 698
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Aug 2011
Posts: 5,351
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From: Kitchener, ON
2010 C63 AMG
If your belt is breaking that's not due to a failed pulley bearing, then something else is wrong. It either doesn't have proper tension or something is misaligned causing it to walk or rub on pulley edges resulting in premature failure.
