gatorback belts ?

[puddinboo]

anyone use these belts for a/c and alternator? Gatorback® Poly-V Serpentine Belts | Goodyear® Engineered Products

[Brandon002]

Anything has to be better than the conti-tech belt I bought from Pep Boys... 2 months in and it's squealing already.

[puddinboo]

the gatorback belt looks like a good quality belt when I looked at it in person compared to the standard type belts out there and I like the design of the belt also ,which I think would eliminate alot of cracking in the long run.

[racingbmwm3]

let us know how long they hold up. I'm interested if they last 50-70k like the factory Conti- belts do. It's only $30 for both Conti belts.
The design does look like it would run cooler and last longer because of greater flexibility and surface area. But how would the reduced contact area affect the chances of slippage?

If you have squealing, check your tensioner or one of your pulleys is going out.

[puddinboo]

I`ll have them on tomorow and then next week heading to london ont, there suppose to be quiet it might be awhile untill I get to 50000km I usually only put on about 12000km a year.

[puddinboo]

Originally Posted by racingbmwm3

let us know how long they hold up. I'm interested if they last 50-70k like the factory Conti- belts do. It's only $30 for both Conti belts.
The design does look like it would run cooler and last longer because of greater flexibility and surface area. But how would the reduced contact area affect the chances of slippage?

If you have squealing, check your tensioner or one of your pulleys is going out.

my belts aren`t squealing I was just checking things out including the belts and noticed the alt belt has cracks every 1/4 " and didn`t want to take a chance driving that far with cracked belts, a/c belt is fine ,but going to replace it anyways. this month going to put about 3000km on the x.

[puddinboo]

Originally Posted by Brandon002

Anything has to be better than the conti-tech belt I bought from Pep Boys... 2 months in and it's squealing already.

how many miles on those belts?

[StephenVA]

I have some expereince with the Goodyear belts. REAL quiet, longer life on hi annual mileage cars. No slip. This design has been around for some 15 years++ First good engineering improvement in serpentine belt design. Use them and report back on your experience.

The feedback on GOOD things that happen when owning a BMW X5 E53 is a little limited on this board as the 3rd owners are taking over now that these SAV Beasts are getting older.

Long Live the Beasts!

Oh, and I put parts on mine over the weekend and I hand washed it as temps got into +35 degrees.....so? Cost of ownership. Cheaper than a car payment even if I have to do it 2x -3x a month.

I really love this one. Nothing better than a hard stomp on the loud pedal to clear your mind. 45 to 80 stomp is the best as there is a good downshift followed by a few hard upshifts. Look mom, no carbon build up!

[puddinboo]

nice color blue looks good on the x and with the 4.8IS it must have a nice rumble to it.
what did you use the gator belts on? I would think the belts wouldn`t crack as easy as the regular belts too, cause of the design

[StephenVA]

I have installed them on approx 15 cars, only two BMWs though. 528 and a 325xt. Hell I even have them on my Dodge 3.3 Mini Van. 40k on it now. Quiet, no slip, no noise wet or dry (or +5 ) Good belt.

The design makes it more flexable (sp?) thereby less cracking in the rib area.