How do i route the serpentine belt correctly on a camry?

[Matthew_W]

I just tried to replace the serpentine belt on my 2012 Camry and I’m not sure I routed it correctly around all the pulleys. The diagram under the hood is faded and now I’m worried about starting the engine.

[EleanorM]

I hear you. I did something similar a while back on a family car and I was sure I messed the routing. I did not crank it at all until the belt looked right and everything else moved cleanly when I spun the crank by hand with the cover off. The serpentine belt can sit in a groove in a lot of spots that look plausible but aren’t right, especially on older cars where the pulleys have offsets. If the diagram is faded, it’s easy to miss one path or to assume a straight line that isn’t there. I’d wait for a clear view or a trusted picture before you even think about starting it.

[EmmaW]

One time I started a car with a half routed belt and it whipped the wrong way and chewed the belt. It made a terrible grinding noise and I swallowed hard and shut it down. That lesson stuck: if you’re not certain, stop and re-check, better to pull the belt off and compare to a fresh diagram.

[AubreyM]

Do you know if you’re looking at the right diagram for your exact engine? My memory is foggy but I once wasted time chasing the routing because the diagram under the hood belonged to a different trim.

[Justin_H]

A quick search helped me once to confirm the belt path but I kept drifting back to worrying about tensioner bearings and the alternator pulling the belt. Even if you see the belt sitting on all pulleys, if your tensioner is weak you’ll still have issues when you run it.