Broken alt/wp belt and car won't run.

[mbw]

Hi, Yesterday the alternator/ waterpump broke on my wife's p5. She said it was squealing and was just trying to get home. As soon as it broke, the engine shut off and wouldn't restart. I'm not sure if the belt hit something else that caused the engine to die or if there is a sensor that shuts down the engine when the wp or alt are not running.

I will be replacing the belt later today.

Any ideas?

[Keegz]

Replace the belt.

[mbw]

I am going to replace the belt. I was just wondering if it will start when I do. Most cars will keep running (until the overheat) after the belt breaks. Since the car isn't at my house, I will be replacing it at the side of the road and was curious if anyone would know why it may have died right away.

[iJay]

When my belt snapped I was on a onramp to the 403 I drove about 12 km till I got to work, car never shut off. just had to coast in neutral for a bit......
Sounds like it could be something else.
Wats the mileage of the car?

[viper_707]

ok it goes like this(well maybe like this) belt breaks alt stops powering car. car feeds off battery till its dead. the car probably shut off due to a crappy old battery that had little to no charge. i could be wrong, its just an idea. get the belt on and give it a boost see what happens. then go get your battery tested just in case.

[kevcol74]

You have to ask yourself, why was the belt squeeling? Chances are there is a problem with the alt or waterpump. If the squeeling happened long enough, the belt may have been slipping enough not to turn the alt properly, hence draining the battery. But, the underlying issue is why the belt as squeeling. My guess, alt or waterpump have seized/failed Since the belt is off, see if you can turn them by hand. If either bind, then there is your issue. Both should spin freely by hand.
GL with it, but my bet is on a bad alt.

[mbw]

Belts are on. Car still won't run. Battery is good. Car turns over and has compression, fuel injectors opening, but fuel pump doesn't seem to be running. Any ideas why the fuel pump would stop working at the same time the alt/wp pump broke.

[non_event]

Did you check the fuse for the fuel pump? And are you sure the fuel pump isn't running?

Also, make sure you didn't knock loose any connectors while you were replacing the belt. Just check any you may have bumped while working.

[CulRidr]

kevcol had some very good suggestions, did you follow them before installing the belt?

[vtec-this]

timing belt slip a few teeth?

[kevcol74]

When you turn the key to the "on" position (not the "start" wgere the engine turns over) all your dash warning lights come on.... you should hear a hum where the fuel pump pressurizes the system. It will only last a few seconds, so make sure you have the radio turned down before you check! If you get no hum, your pump isn't working. Check pump fuses, as well as connections. Pull your back seat out and there is an access plate you can remove to get at the pump on the top of the gas tank. Check the connection there if your fuse is good. If you have a test light, or multimeter, you can check for power going to the pump. If you have power going to it, then its your pump. Try giving your gas tank a smack from underneath with something not too sharp/strong (ie, not a metal hammer, maybe a rubber mallet, or 2x4) The pump may be stuck, and a smack can jar it enough to get it going. But, you aren't in the clear if that works, your pump WILL fail soon.

GL

[mbw]

timing belt slip a few teeth?
That was it. A piece of the timing cover broke off and caused the belt to jump a few teeth.