🔧 Renegade - Serpentine Belt Replacement

The serpentine belt drives accessories like the alternator and A/C compressor. Replacing it on your Renegade involves relieving tension with the automatic belt tensioner, swapping the belt, then confirming correct routing and alignment on every pulley.

Difficulty Level: Intermediate | Estimated Time: 0.8-1.5 hours

---

⚠️ Safety & Precautions

• ⚠️ Work on a cold engine to avoid burns.
• ⚠️ Keep fingers and tools away from pulleys at all times.
• ⚠️ Support the vehicle securely before working underneath.
• ⚠️ Disconnect the negative battery cable if your tools will be near the alternator power stud.
• ⚠️ Do not start the engine until the belt is fully seated on every pulley.

---

🔧 Required Tools

You'll need the following tools for this repair:

• Safety glasses
• Mechanic gloves
• Wheel chocks
• Floor jack (rated 3-ton minimum)
• Jack stands (rated 3-ton minimum)
• Lug wrench 19mm
• Trim clip removal tool
• Flat-blade screwdriver
• Ratchet 3/8" drive
• Serpentine belt tool 3/8" drive (specialty)
• Socket set metric (8mm, 10mm)
• Torque wrench 3/8" drive (10-60 Nm range)
• Flashlight

---

🔩 Required Parts

HowToo sells all the parts you need for this repair:

• Serpentine belt - Qty: 1
• Accessory drive belt tensioner - Qty: 1 Optional if noisy/weak
• Belt idler pulley - Qty: 1 Optional if noisy
• Fender liner push clips - Qty: 5-10 Optional if any break

---

📋 Before You Begin

• Park on level ground, shift to Park, and set the parking brake.
• Place wheel chocks behind the rear wheels.
• Open the hood and locate the belt routing diagram (often on a sticker near the radiator support or under-hood area). If missing, take a clear photo/draw a sketch before removing the belt.
• If you’ll be working close to the alternator electrical terminal, disconnect the negative battery cable using a 10mm socket.

---

🔨 Step-by-Step Instructions

Follow these steps in order:

Step 1: Raise and secure the right-front corner

• Use wheel chocks to secure the vehicle.
• Loosen the right-front wheel lug nuts slightly using a 19mm lug wrench.
• Lift the right-front corner with a floor jack and set it down on jack stands.
• Remove the wheel with the 19mm lug wrench.

Step 2: Remove the right front inner fender liner access

• Use a trim clip removal tool and flat-blade screwdriver to remove the plastic push-clips/screws from the front portion of the right inner fender liner.
• Peel the liner back enough to access the belt and pulleys. Go slow to avoid tearing the liner.

Step 3: Locate the belt tensioner and relieve tension

• Identify the automatic belt tensioner (a spring-loaded arm with a pulley). The square drive hole is for a ratchet.
• Insert a 3/8" drive serpentine belt tool or 3/8" ratchet into the tensioner square drive.
• Rotate the tensioner smoothly to relieve belt tension. Hold it firmly; it’s spring-loaded.

Step 4: Remove the old belt

• While holding the tensioner released with the serpentine belt tool, slip the belt off the easiest-to-reach smooth pulley (often the idler or alternator pulley).
• Slowly let the tensioner return to its rest position.
• Remove the belt from the remaining pulleys and pull it out through the wheel well opening.

Step 5: Inspect pulleys, tensioner, and belt path

• Spin each pulley by hand and listen/feel for grinding or wobble.
• Check the tensioner pulley for roughness and the tensioner arm for weak spring action.
• If any pulley is noisy or wobbly, replace the bad component before installing the new belt.

Step 6: Route the new belt

• Compare the new belt to the old one for length and rib count.
• Route the new belt around the pulleys following the under-hood routing diagram (or your photo).
• Make sure the ribbed side sits fully in the grooves of ribbed pulleys, and the smooth side rides on smooth pulleys.

Step 7: Apply tension and seat the belt

• Use the 3/8" drive serpentine belt tool to rotate the tensioner and create slack.
• Slip the belt onto the last pulley, then slowly release the tensioner.
• Visually confirm the belt is centered on every pulley and not hanging off an edge.

Step 8: Reinstall fender liner and wheel

• Reposition the liner and install the clips/screws using the trim clip removal tool and flat-blade screwdriver.
• Reinstall the wheel and snug lug nuts with the 19mm lug wrench.
• Lower the vehicle from the jack stands using the floor jack.
• Tighten lug nuts in a star pattern using a torque wrench: Torque to 135 Nm (100 ft-lbs).

Step 9: Reconnect battery (if disconnected) and final check

• Reconnect the negative battery cable using a 10mm socket.
• Double-check belt routing one last time with the flashlight.

---

✅ After Repair

• Start the engine and watch the belt for 30-60 seconds. It should run smooth with no wandering.
• Listen for squealing or chirping. If present, shut off and re-check belt seating on all grooves.
• Turn A/C on, headlights on, and verify no unusual noises under load.
• After a short test drive, re-check for any loose liner clips or rubbing.

---

💰 DIY vs Shop Cost

Shop Cost: $170-$320 (parts + labor)

DIY Cost: $30-$80 (parts only)

You Save: $140-$240 by doing it yourself!

Shop labor rates vary but typically run $100-$150/hour. This repair takes a shop approximately 0.8-1.5 hours.

---

🎯 Ready to get started?

HowToo makes it easy: same-day/2-day shipping on every part, plus all the tools and specialty tools you need! Check out the parts and tools sections below to add everything to your cart.