🔧 Passport - Serpentine Belt Replacement

The serpentine belt drives key accessories like the alternator and A/C compressor. Replacing it fixes belt squeal, cracking, glazing, or a worn belt that could break and leave you stranded.

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

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⚠️ Safety & Precautions

• 🧤 Work on a cool engine; the radiator fan can start unexpectedly.
• 🧯 Keep fingers/clothes clear of pulleys; never run the engine with hands near the belt.
• 🧰 If you raise the vehicle, support it with jack stands on solid ground (never rely on a jack).
• 🔌 Battery disconnect is not required, but keep the key far away and don’t press the Start button during the job.

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🔧 Required Tools

You'll need the following tools for this repair:

• Safety glasses
• Mechanic gloves
• Floor jack (rated 3-ton minimum)
• Jack stands (rated 3-ton minimum)
• Wheel chocks
• 22mm socket
• 1/2" drive breaker bar
• 3/8" drive ratchet
• 3/8" drive extension set
• 10mm socket
• Trim clip remover
• Serpentine belt tool with 14mm socket (specialty)
• 14mm combination wrench
• Torque wrench (10-150 ft-lb range)
• Flashlight

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🔩 Required Parts

HowToo sells all the parts you need for this repair:

• Serpentine belt - Qty: 1
• Fender liner clips - Qty: 4-8

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📋 Before You Begin

• 🅿️ Park on level ground, shift to Park, and set the parking brake.
• 🧱 Place wheel chocks behind the rear wheels.
• 📸 Take a clear photo of the belt routing before removal (this is your “map”).
• 🔎 Find the belt routing diagram sticker (often under the hood). If it’s missing, your photo is essential.

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🔨 Step-by-Step Instructions

Follow these steps in order:

Step 1: Get access to the belt

• Open the hood and remove any plastic engine cover that lifts off by hand (if equipped).
• For easiest access, lift the right-front corner of your Passport: use a floor jack (rated 3-ton minimum) and support it with jack stands (rated 3-ton minimum).
• Remove the right-front wheel using a 22mm socket and 1/2" drive breaker bar.
• Remove the right-front inner fender/splash shield fasteners using a 10mm socket, 3/8" drive ratchet, and trim clip remover.
• Set the wheel nuts aside where they won’t get lost.

Step 2: Locate the automatic belt tensioner

• From the wheel-well opening, locate the belt and the spring-loaded tensioner.
• The tensioner is the part that keeps the belt tight; it pivots when you apply force.
• You will rotate the tensioner by turning the bolt head on the tensioner pulley with a 14mm combination wrench or serpentine belt tool with 14mm socket (specialty).
• “Tensioner” = spring-loaded belt tightener.

Step 3: Release belt tension

• Place the 14mm combination wrench (or serpentine belt tool with 14mm socket (specialty)) on the tensioner pulley bolt.
• Rotate the tensioner to relieve belt tension (it will be stiff). If it feels wrong, stop and reposition—don’t force it.
• While holding the tensioner released, slide the belt off the nearest easy-to-reach pulley (usually the alternator pulley) by hand.
• Slowly let the tensioner return to its resting position. Do not let it snap back.
• Go slow—snapping can damage the tensioner.

Step 4: Remove the old belt and inspect pulleys

• Pull the belt out of the engine bay from the wheel-well opening.
• Spin each pulley by hand and feel/listen for roughness or wobble.
• If any pulley is noisy/rough, the belt may fail early unless that pulley (or tensioner) is addressed.

Step 5: Route the new belt correctly

• Compare the new belt to the old one for the same length and rib count.
• Route the new belt around the pulleys following your photo/under-hood diagram.
• Make sure the ribbed side of the belt sits fully in the ribbed pulleys, and the flat side sits on smooth pulleys.
• Leave the belt off one easy pulley for last (again, often the alternator) so you can slip it on after releasing tension.
• If one rib is off, it will shred.

Step 6: Apply tension and seat the belt

• Rotate the tensioner again using the 14mm combination wrench or serpentine belt tool with 14mm socket (specialty).
• Slip the belt fully onto the last pulley.
• Slowly release the tensioner back to apply tension to the belt.
• Visually check every pulley: the belt must be centered and fully seated in the grooves.

Step 7: Reinstall splash shield and wheel

• Reinstall the fender liner/splash shield using the trim clip remover (to position clips) and 10mm socket with 3/8" drive ratchet.
• Reinstall the wheel and hand-start the lug nuts.
• Lower your Passport off the jack stands using the floor jack (rated 3-ton minimum).
• Tighten lug nuts in a star pattern using a torque wrench (10-150 ft-lb range): Torque to 127 Nm (94 ft-lbs).

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✅ After Repair

• 👀 Before starting, do one last full routing check—every pulley, every groove.
• 🚗 Start the engine and watch the belt for 15-30 seconds; it should run smoothly with no wandering.
• 🔇 Listen for chirping/squeal. If present, shut off and re-check belt seating.
• 🧪 Turn A/C on and off and confirm no abnormal noises.

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💰 DIY vs Shop Cost

Shop Cost: $180-$350 (parts + labor)

DIY Cost: $35-$80 (parts only)

You Save: $100-$270 by doing it yourself!

Shop labor rates vary but typically run $100-$150/hour. This repair takes a shop approximately 0.8-1.2 hours.

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🎯 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.