BMW 3 Series E46 Serpentine Belt Replacement · Step 1 — Preparation These are the two belts being replaced, the smaller is the AC belt and the larger is the alternator/serpentine

BMW 3 Series E46 Serpentine BeltReplacement

Tips on BMW 3 Series E46 Serpentine Belt Replacement.

Written By: DriveDIY

BMW 3 Series E46 Serpentine Belt Replacement Draft: 2016-01-17Guide ID: 42 -

This document was generated on 2019-09-20 03:58:18 PM (MST).

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INTRODUCTION

Discover step-by-step details on BMW 330xi E46 Serpentine Belt Replacement.

Credit: kredden e46fanatics

TOOLS:3/8" Ratchet (1)3/8" Extension Set (1)Torx T25 Socket (1)Torx T50 Socket (1)Nitrile Disposable Gloves (1)Needle Nose Pliar (1)Small Flat Screwdriver (1)




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Step 1 — Preparation

These are the two belts being replaced, the smaller is the AC belt and the larger is thealternator/serpentine belt.

The illustration shows the routing of the 2 belts




Step 2 — Remove the Air Intake Piece

First you need to remove the air intake piece that sits on top of the fan shroud by pulling out thethree retaining clips that the arrows point to. Carefully pry up the part that looks like a nail headwith the screwdriver just enough so you can grab it with the needle nose pliers.

Once you have it with the pliers just pull slowly and steadily and it will come out. Be extra careful ifyou are working in the cold as the plastic could be brittle. Once the three clips are removed youshould be able to lift up the intake and wiggle it out of the rubber connection to the air filterhousing.

Here is a pic of what you are pulling out.

Now the air intake is off.




Step 3 — Remove the Left Bolt Holding the Fain Shroud

Next remove the bolt on the leftholding the fan shroud in. This iswhere you will use the T25 Torx bit.Interestingly enough the "bolt" onthe right side is actually another ofthose plastic connectors similar tothose that held the intake in.Carefully remove that like you didthe others.

Step 4 — Remove the 2 Electrical Connectors on the Left Side of the Shroud

Once those are out you need toremove the two electrical connectorson the left side of the shroud. Thesmaller connector might be a littletough to remove, you push the tabon the top down and carefully wiggleit off. The big connector should bepretty easy to get off.




Step 5 — Remove the Wires from the Retainer

Once you have the electricalconnectors off you will need toremove the wires from the retainerholding it to the shroud. I found thisto be the hardest part of the DIY :-).

The retainer doesn't really bend soyou need to lift the shroud a bit soyou can get your fingers in there towiggle out the wires. Be careful asyou don't want to break through theinsulation on the wires.




Step 6 — Slowly Lift the Fan/Shroud Combo Out of the Car

Once that is done you should beable to easily (and slowly) lift thefan/shroud combo out of the car, theright side may catch a bit so becareful. Here is the fan and shroudafter it has been removed.




Step 7 — Slip the Shroud into the Retaining Slips

Take a look where the shroud wasin the car and note the location ofthe retaining clips on the car. Youwill need to make sure that theshroud slips into all of them properlywhen putting it back in.




Step 8 — Note the Location of the 2 Belt Tensioners

OK, now that that is out of the wayhere is a pic of the belts we need toreplace. Note the location of the twobelt tensioners that we will need todetention to get the belts off.

Step 9

Here is a closeup of the AC belt withthe tensioner in the middle, the ACbelt needs to come off first.




Step 10 — Remove the Dust Cap Off

Next you need to remove the dust cap off of the AC tensioner.

Here's a picture of what the cap looks like.

Step 11 — Use the T50 Torx Bit

Now we need to make use of theT50 Torx bit. To detension thetensioner you turn it clockwise withthe ratchet. If you have it as shownin this picture, you push down on theratchet.

This tensioner is not very stiff andshould move easily. Mine looked tobe in great shape so I didn't replaceit.




Step 12 — Remove the AC Belt

While holding the tensioner in adetensioned state you should beable to easily remove the AC beltwith your other hand.




Step 13 — Move Onto the Alternator (or Serpentine) Belt Tensioner

Now we move on to the alternator(or serpentine) belt tensioner. This iswhere you make use of the 8mmhex bit socket. A little caution here.This tensioner is MUCH stiffer thanthe one for the AC belt so makesure you use a quality hex socket bitthat will not round off!

You will also need a socket wrenchwith a longer handle as you aregoing to have to apply quite a bit offorce to get it to move enough.

Here is a shot of the tensioner withits cap still on.

Step 14 — Remove the Caps with a Bladed Screw Driver

And now with the cap removed, toget these caps off you carefully prythem off with a flat bladed screwdriver. They will most likely pop offand go flying.

Also I should mention that youshould be careful when workingdown here so that you don't dingyour radiator with any of the tools!




Step 15 — Make a Simple Drawing of the Routing

At this point it would be wise to make a simple drawing of the routing that the belt uses around thevarious pulleys so you don't get confused when putting it back on!

Here I am about to detention the tensioner. Note that I put the reverse clicker on the socket wrenchonly so I could take the picture without holding it.

This one also detensions in the clockwise manner, I found it more convenient to pull this one uprather than pushing down so the wrench is shown on the opposite side of the tensioner ascompared the the AC one.

As I mentioned, this one takes a lot more force to move so be careful and don't let it snap back asthis could break the tensioner! Slow and steady is the name of the game here.




Step 16 — Remove the Belt

With the greater force needed this belt is a little trickier to get off but you can do it! Here it is almostoff snagged on the bit. Just wiggle the bit out and the belt basically falls off. Once again mytensioner appeared to be in great shape so I didn't replace it.

Here we are with both the belts off.




Step 17 — Place the New Belts On

Now time to get the new belts on. First we put the alt belt on. Look at the drawing you made (youdid make that drawing didn't you?) and put the belt on all the pulleys except for the tensionerpulley so that it appears as in the picture below.

Once that is done put the belt around the hex bit so that you will be able to slip the belt on whenthe tensioner is detensioned. Now pull up on the socket wrench to detension the tensioner and slipthe belt onto the tensioner pulley.

Let off the tension slowly. Once that is done check how the belt it situated on each of the pulleys tomake sure it is on right, more than likely one of them won't be quite right so detension it a bit againand fix the belt.

Once the belt is situated on all the pulleys it should look as it did before you started




Step 18 — The Finishing Process

Now we need to get the AC beltback on. This one is much simpler.Switch back to the T50 Torx bit andplace the belt onto the pulleys asshown in the pic below. Thendetension the tensioner by pushingdown on the ratchet.

Slip the belt over the top of thepulley and let off on the tension.Now check the belt to make sure it ison properly, if not detension a bitand fix it.

Put the dust covers back on to thetensioners and make sure they areseated all the way. Now all you needto do is put the fan/shroud assemblyand intake back in.

Be careful slipping the wiring backinto the retainer on the shroud andmake sure that when you drop theshroud in that it rests in the retainerson the radiator properly.

To get the plastic clip holding theright side of the shroud to theradiator you may have to squeezethe end of it together a bit to get it togo back in. Make sure all the clipsare pushed in all the way and youare good to go!




Documents

BMW 3 Series E46 Serpentine Belt Replacement · Step 1 — Preparation These are the two belts being replaced, the smaller is the AC belt and the larger is the alternator/serpentine