I do try to work on my car but I am no car mechanic.

Starter motor change no problem. But no chance that I would change a head gasket etc.

My Octavia has a bad squeaking noise off the Axillary belt and I cannot work out what it is.

The belt isn't slipping.

The belt looks okay. The noise seems to be coming from the area between the tensioner and the alternator pulley.

I cannot see any obvious fault with the alternator pulley.

Moving the tensioner slightly produced uncertain results.

I didn't want to over loosen in case it fell off and put the car out of action.

Now Nothing in this area looks easy to work on, even a belt change looks a bigger job than say an old Vectra or a Micra.

Asked a Skoda garage to take a look as I suspected the tensioner.

The wife who took it in, reports that they said the tensioner was fine.

That they would have to have take it in to work on it but it could be the air con pump.

Now in my experience if a garage speaks to a woman all she will get is the partial truth and high bills.

Any ideas to diagnose or best approach or best tips to change the belt etc?

Replace the belt it's a quick cheap job and as I found with my last Octy, even if it looked ok it wasn't.

I think the last time I was under the bonnet it looked as easy to change as my last car. On the tensioner there is a lug put a spanner on it and move the tensioner enough to get it out of the way. You should be able to replace the belt whist holding the tensioner.

Replace the belt it's a quick cheap job and as I found with my last Octy, even if it looked ok it wasn't.

I think the last time I was under the bonnet it looked as easy to change as my last car. On the tensioner there is a lug put a spanner on it and move the tensioner enough to get it out of the way. You should be able to replace the belt whist holding the tensioner.

So it's off with the wheel and all the wheel arch covers.

Or has someone found a better way?

I have since noticed that by turning the aircon off, by setting the fan speed to zero on the climatic control, the noise reduces by 75%.

Perhaps it is the aircon pump?

......Changed the Aux belt, no change to the problem...From the internet it looks like it's the clutch on the air con pump which sits below the alternator.

It seems the electrical clutch on the end, only engages when the aircon pump is on.

When it's off it free-wheels......seems to make sense.....How much for a clutch I wonder?

.....Okay I have pulled the electrical plug off the aircon pump (at the right side).

Turning the aircon off and on now makes no change ..quod erat demonstratum.

Well that's the temporary fix... annoying noise gone, no refrigeration until I have time to get a replacement part,,,,,,, if it's worth while, on a 9 year old car with 134k on the clock.

Edited 27 March, 201115 yr by bzblbw