I replaced my ten year old OEM belt at 93,000 miles because... it was ten years old. Then I broke part of the tensior that allowed it to relieve tension from the belt. Then I found out that the bolt that holds belt tensioner is too long to remove. :laugh:

It's up to you. I more or less use my own personal list for maintenance on my 08 Camry. I'd probably replace it every 100,000 miles unless the belt is deteriorated enough that I have to replace it early.

 

I replaced my ten year old OEM belt at 93,000 miles because... it was ten years old. Then I broke part of the tensior that allowed it to relieve tension from the belt. Then I found out that the bolt that holds belt tensioner is too long to remove. [emoji23]



It's up to you. I more or less use my own personal list for maintenance on my 08 Camry. I'd probably replace it every 100,000 miles unless the belt is deteriorated enough that I have to replace it early.

Is yours a 4 cyl or v6 had no problems taking my tensioner off when changing the water pump to get better access to the bolts. Were you using deep sockets maybe?


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Doesn't look too hard.

 

It’s very easy just take pictures of the routing and I think it’s a 14mm that you can put on the tensioner to relieve tension. Slip the old one off put the new one on and good to go. Expect the new one to be tight. I didn’t think the Gates belt was going on but it did after a little working at it. If you want to you can take the tire off and undo the shield to get better access to the crank pulley and compressor, but it’s not necessary.

Oh my 2014 camrys oem was still looking good at 115k miles, but I had to change the water pump so I went back with a new one to not have to worry about it for a while. I think gates recommended 90k in the replacement one.

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I wouldn't worry about it till 100K.

 

Interesting talks come about this kind of question. Some work should be 100% PM (preventative maintenance), so it begs the question when to change it. Miles versus years versus gut versus wallet. If the serpentine belt goes you are dead on the road until you replace it as you can't use your water pump, alternator is not turning, PS pump not pumping, fun stuff like that. So - you never want to wait until it fails to replace.

On an I4 taking it off and on is pretty easy if you don't have other issues that are waiting to fail (like Vang's tensioner). Take the belt off and inspect it for cracks. If it looks good, put it on and give it another ??? miles, then inspect again. Or just put a new one on - they are not expensive. Like stated above they *should* last around 100k but that depends. If it is a cheap aftermarket, or there was a bad production lot, it could fail in 100 miles. I like OEM on critical parts that failure means I am stuck on the side of the road or maybe you know, dead. I'll venture into aftermarket if it is just a PITA to deal with failure.

 

Accessory belts never fail without warning: squeaking, vibrating tensioner, dry cracking, missing chunks, glazing, separating layers, if you open a hood at least once a year it's hard to miss a dying belt. 100K is an easy estimate, I kept a 2001 Camry till 120K and the OEM belt was still ok.

 

I have an 09 Camry Hybrid with 150K miles. It still has the original brakes and drive belt. Had it in to my dealer for an oil change on Fri and was told for the first time ever that I should change out the drive belt! On their inspection rating system of Green, Yellow, and Red, the tech, much to my surprise, rated the belt as being in the Yellow. Now that I know, I will get it changed out this week. BTW, the dealer is charging $171 plus tax and "shop" fees, and I can apply a $15 promo repair coupon to the final bill. Is that a reasonable price/deal? The dealer is located in metro Atlanta.

 

EPDM belts wear like tires do...sort of. They really don't crack like the V type belts and the EPDM ( Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer...phew , thats a mouth full) will wear thin with mileage and then suddenly snap without warning. Dayco makes a handy tool for measuring the depth of the grooves and can be seen here at
Daycoawearness.com.
Here is a youtube video as well.

I got mine for free at AdvancedAuto, maybe other stores like Autozone have thenm available as well.