Squealling car

[mightyWBA]

I have a 15 year old Mercedes 190E with 72000 miles on the clock.The engine is making a horrible squealling noise when it starts up,and this can still be heard whilst driving along.

Whats causing it.Cheers.

[homer75]

fan belt is slipping u need to adjust the tension to stop the noise

[rugeleyboy]

yep.. fan belt!

[stanleyman]

Not sure about the petrol engine but the deisel fan belt is automaticly adjusted and if the same, the idler bearing is probably worn causing it to run at an angle and make the squealing noise. Not a difficult job once you now how.

[funkymoped]

STANLEYMAN gets my vote. i know nothing about mercs, but that guy sounds like he does....

if all else fails try wd40... its a cure for most things.

[rugeleyboy]

mighty wba said his merc makes the noise when it starts,the car uses most power out of the battery when starting and it takes a while for the alternator to pump power back into the battery.... hence the squealing fan belt!!

it may be the idler bearing?i just fancied giving a more detailed answer so funkymoped agrees with me!!

[funkymoped]

come to think of it, Rugeleyboy knows a thing or two obout older Mercs.

if i had a noise coming from under the bonnet, ide say it was the fan belt. (or idler bearing)

[stanleyman]

Just to clarify, the fan belt I'm refering to is flat and unlikely to slip like a single veebelt, the 190E could be a veebelt that needs adjusting. If the idler bearing is worn it causes the belt to squeal continously even when tight plus the worn bearing can also make a noise. These flat belts can also make a racket even when there is nothing wrong especially when new.