Repair-It

Supercharger belt took like 5 mins. The main belt will require bottom access so I'll do that when I change the oil.

I operated the tensioner using a 17mm 12 point box end and held it open with a, uh, 5/32" drill bit maybe.

Super easy. I did it while the kids were playing in the driveway.

Did the serpentine belt while I had the panels off. It is a very long belt. About 97". Yeah a little over 8 feet long.

At first I thought it wasn't going to work. In fact the belt I got is 1/2" longer than the one it had. I thought Rockauto screwed up but it seems like there is a range that is acceptable. Turns out the main issue was I had the routing wrong. It is complicated. But I got it on. It's a top and bottom affair. The main belt tensioner is also released with a 17mm but instead of an open wrench, a deep socket works better.

Haven't run yet but I think it will be fine. The old belt had no cracks at all from what I could see.

I did run it. It was fine. The transmission however....

Just tracking this here. Decided to toss my Gates RPM belt for a stock Continental replacement which is less than half the price. I believe I was having belt slip. So I cleaned the area under the front engine cover which was pretty coated in belt dust, and we'll see what happens over time.

Used P/N 1139970192, https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/merced ... 1139970192 and under $20. It is an 8K1289 spec belt. 8 rib and I guess 1289mm long? Or 1290. It's confusing. But at least I can just replace this at will (plus shipping I guess so maybe not a huge win).