Power Steering and Battery Light and Coolant all went to hell

[tripod06]

SO i was coming home from a night out with a friend just minding my own business and all of the sudden, the battery light came on, the power steering went out and i started leaking coolant. what happened here? i am so confused and really upset right now. please help!

[kayger12]

Sounds like you either fragged a pulley or lost a belt.

Did she overheat?

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[tripod06]

Removed the air filter and the serpentine belt is shredded to hell and back. That I read, is what turns the alternator and power steering and coolant flow also so I found my problem. I just now am wondering what the costs would be on this repair. I think I hit something last night like road debris but dont know. All the belts have been fine before so this is a wonder to me.

[kayger12]

If it's just the belt, it will be a cheap fix.

I would just double-check and make sure all of your pulleys are still there and that none of them seized up.

http://i1015.photobucket.com/albums/af278/nicee46/Maintenance%20and%20Misc/e46beltdiagram.png

[danewilson77]

Buy both belts and all three pulleys. Did you find any coolant leaks?

HTC Thunderbolt+TT

[Newjack]

Make sure you get decent belts too. Contitech is what most people use on their e46. Advance and other places (in my area) only sell garbage brands like Dayco for half the price. Not worth chancing it with belts.

[kayger12]

Make sure you get decent belts too. Contitech is what most people use on their e46. Advance and other places (in my area) only sell garbage brands like Dayco for half the price. Not worth chancing it with belts.

This.

Droid X. Tapatalk. Use it.

[ranger]

Have you done the cooling upgrade yet. Might be time to change the water pump, thermostat, hoses, belts, pulleys, etc.

[danewilson77]

Have you done the cooling upgrade yet. Might be time to change the water pump, thermostat, hoses, belts, pulleys, etc.

He's on a Dayco budget.

[llll1l1ll]

Unfortunate, since now would be an opportune time to replace everything there.

[danewilson77]

Unfortunate, since now would be an opportune time to replace everything there.

Agree.

HTC Thunderbolt+TT

[tripod06]

i would love to do all that but yeah, the times are tough right now, just being honest. not proud of it though :(

[llll1l1ll]

Hey man, sometimes you can only do what you can afford. It happens to the best of us. Don't be ashamed. You'll fix the rest at the right time.

[aurelius]

Let us know if your idler & tensioner pulleys are still there. The root cause of these symptoms is often the idler pulley, tho the serpentine belt can certainly shred all by itself.

What's your current mileage?

[danewilson77]

Hey man, sometimes you can only do what you can afford. It happens to the best of us. Don't be ashamed. You'll fix the rest at the right time.

Fix'd and +1. No shame in doing what you can to keep your wheels rollin. Hell....I cheaped out on tires, and put them on BBS rims. Didn't really want to, but the Khumo's fit my budget better.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Albert, do your best.

[billschusteriv]

Albert - Hope you were able to bring the car to a stop safely and quickly.

You mentioned leaking coolant? Did you notice an overheat? Keep an eye out for continued coolant loss. That symptom could be indicative of moar problems - I had this happen to me. Be sure to keep the coolant level in the right zone (use the float). You can drive like this for a while.

FWIW, while we all like to talk about what fluids and parts we should be putting in our cars - just know that you can limp along with universal coolant and aftermarket parts. My indy mechanic does it on his own cars - but that's based on his resources and skills.

The conti belts aren't too bad - price-wise - depending on where you can find them. AutohausAZ has them for 9.77 (AC Belt) and 18.15 (Drive Belt). Idler pulley is 24.68 (OEM), Accessory pulley is 17.20 - for hydraulic tensioners.

[wsmeyer]

^^ Yeah, what happened with the leaking fluid?

The most likely scenario is that the water pump failed and froze, leaking coolant and shredding the belt.

William.

[danewilson77]

Albert - Hope you were able to bring the car to a stop safely and quickly.

You mentioned leaking coolant? Did you notice an overheat? Keep an eye out for continued coolant loss. That symptom could be indicative of moar problems - I had this happen to me. Be sure to keep the coolant level in the right zone (use the float). You can drive like this for a while.

FWIW, while we all like to talk about what fluids and parts we should be putting in our cars - just know that you can limp along with universal coolant and aftermarket parts. My indy mechanic does it on his own cars - but that's based on his resources and skills.

The conti belts aren't too bad - price-wise - depending on where you can find them. AutohausAZ has them for 9.77 (AC Belt) and 18.15 (Drive Belt). Idler pulley is 24.68 (OEM), Accessory pulley is 17.20 - for hydraulic tensioners.

Yes....his car went into the red. He lost coolant...but upon re-fill, system appeared tight?

[billschusteriv]

Yes....his car went into the red. He lost coolant...but upon re-fill, system appeared tight?

Thanks DW. I missed that.


^^ Yeah, what happened with the leaking fluid?

The most likely scenario is that the water pump failed and froze, leaking coolant and shredding the belt.

William.

Good call. You could fill the system and check for leakage around the water pump shaft or from weephole on the underside of the pump.

Another possibility - if the water pump was fine and the belt shredded, the coolant temperature could've risen high enough to pressurize the system and lift the relief in the coolant cap. You would see some coolant spots around/under the cap area.

Hopefully the rest of the system is intact and you don't have any small leaks around the radiator, expansion tank, upper thermostat (or lower if you have an automatic), or other plastics.

Keep us posted!

[danewilson77]

Thanks DW. I missed that.


We had phone comms on Sunday.

[tripod06]

so it was the idler pulley. the car is in the shop now. i found out yesterday about the idler pulley but was in a state of mind not fit for doing or saying much to anyone. lots of problems were crashing on me all at once. ex-GF saying she misses me and what she did was wrong. the car problems right after i got new rear tires. figuring out if i should move into a new place or not. so many things at once.

you guys have been so supportive and helpful with everything. again, the idler pulley went so that cause the serp. belt to go. coolant will be replaced but i know it wont be BMW coolant but i think i might flush it out when i get it back and put BMW coolant in there. it'll make me feel a little better.

someone asked my mileage, i'm currently at about 83,330. yes the car did get into the red line area. but after it cooled, coolant was refilled with no leaks. thankful for that.

i'm more thankful for all your help and input. Lord knows i wouldnt know what to do if it werent for helpful friends like you!

[Marcus-SanDiego]

coolant will be replaced but i know it wont be BMW coolant

Curious as to why the shop won't put BMW coolant in there.

Thanks, AM.

[tripod06]

car is finished. will be picking it up after work. they got BMW coolant for me :) they said that its running like a champ now. God bless me and my car.

[Marcus-SanDiego]

Excellent. Glad to hear that things turned out well, Albert.

[tripod06]

me too. this means i will definitely be south bound at the end of the month on the last wednesday!

[Marcus-SanDiego]

me too. this means i will definitely be south bound at the end of the month on the last wednesday!

Yep. Next Wednesday: http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=213892105326419

[tripod06]

yeah i'm in for sure. sounds like it will be fun!