Dear Tom and Ray:

Recently, I took my 1993 Buick Century to a local dealer for servicing prior to starting on a road trip. The odometer reading was slightly over 22,000 miles, and at the time I had had the car 33 months. I was shocked when the service department informed me that a belt changeover was needed involving the "serpentine" belt. I registered my surprise that this would be necessary at 22,000 miles. Is it normal to have belts replaced on today's automobiles at 22,000 miles? I can appreciate that belts may deteriorate, but I'm wondering about the kind of material used in these belts. Could they be made of some low-grade material, possibly including cork granules or some other flimsy material that might cause them to fail at 20,000 miles? -- Carl

Tom: Our chief investigator, Paul Murky, of Murky Research, has looked into this for us, Carl. And he was shocked to discover that belts for the '93 Century are, in fact, made out of old Boone's Farm Strawberry Hill corks, used Hartz flea collars and petrified giraffe droppings from Busch Gardens.

Ray: Actually, belts should last 30,000 to 40,000 miles, Carl. So 22,000 is a little on the early side. But there are several possible explanations.

Tom: One is that the belt had just worn out prematurely. The belt could have been defective, or may have been damaged somehow. Or perhaps -- in addition to your 22,000 miles -- you spent the equivalent of another 15,000 miles idling the engine, waiting for your wife to come out of the betting parlor.

Ray: Another possibility is that the dealer was being less than honest with you. Maybe you didn't really need a new belt. Maybe it just showed some early signs of wear, but he had a boat payment due and needed a few extra bucks that week.

Tom: More likely, however, is that he was just being cautious. You said you came in for service prior to a road trip. My guess is that he detected some signs or wear in the belt -- maybe a little bit of cracking -- and recommended that you play it safe and replace the belt before you hit the road.

Ray: Sure, it's possible that the belt could have lasted another 10,000 miles. But on the other hand, it could have broken -- and left you with no power steering -- while you were on your way down Pike's Peak.

Tom: And then you'd be writing to us complaining that you took the car in for service, and the morons at the dealership didn't have the good sense to tell you to change the belt that was about to break.

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Dear Tom and Ray:

Will it hurt my husband's 1996 Pathfinder to have its exhaust pipe hooked up to a shop vac that reduces to two garden hoses leading to a trap with a skunk in it? It has to idle for about 25 per skunk in order to "euthanize" them. -- Marcia

Tom: Will it hurt the car? No.

Ray: The skunk, on the other hand, might have a different opinion.

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Tom and Ray lead you step by step through the process of finding and buying a reliable used car in their pamphlet How to Buy a Used Car: Things That Detroit and Tokyo Don't Want You to Know. To order, To order, send (check or money order) to Ruin, P.O. Box 536475, Orlando, FL 32853-6475. You can also order online.

© 1997 by Tom and Ray Magliozzi and Doug Berman Distributed by King Features Syndicate, Inc.

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