l got the altinator replaced when i'd got the car last year, is due for its MOT next month so ive a booking with the family mechanic next week. for the past couple of weeks the car has sometimes made a brief squealing noise when l start teh engine in the morning, and on 2 or 3 occassions now its made a squealing sound when l change down a gear whilst sort of ''coasting changing to a higher gear instantly solves the problem

im assuming its my fan belt but dont really know if its the case or not... would l be better getting it looked at ASAP rather than waiting til my appointment with the mechanic next week? does it sound ,like a fan belt problem??
the altinator was installed last year as new. l cant afford a new car until next year so im hoping it lasts this year if it passes MOT then l can hopefully afford a newer car. until then l need to make do with this so l hope its fixable

Yes it sounds like a fan belt problem, my last car used to squeal like a damn pig in the mornings.

l had the belt replaced and all was well. If your belt is not overly worn, just put some belt dressing on it, and that should help. Although belts are cheap to replace anyway, so you might as well just replace it.

hey there it is more than likely that ur fan/drive belt is not adjusted correctly no big deal if ur going to see ur mechanic soon. if that does not stop it it could be the bearing on the front of ur new alternator (very unlikely though). the noise happens because of the temp changing the belts flexibility ie cold in morning stiff. because of noise at lower gear change the belt is heated up & has become sloppy. thats why u must have corredt tension in ur belts..oh yeah dont spray crc or something like that on it to stop noise although noise is gone what u r doing is creating friction on the belt & in turn will dry the belt very quick & will cause breakage over a short period of time..

most likey the belt loose or bad dont matter how old it is if it squealing its bad or loose or a pulley has locked up

Other r correct, partly. The problem is the drive belt to the alternator, & l suspect that it is worse on wet days. Where they r wrong is that the Clio drive belt (dont call it a fan belt) is not adjustable. You may be able to extend its life by cleaning the pulley at the end of the alternator using some degreaser.

This happened on my car & soon after the alternator packed up costing £360 to repair. Your car is 11 years old now, l would seriously think about getting a 12 month MOT & then part ex for something newer