Serpentine accessory belt and tensioner replacement on VP D4-260 C-28

[scross]

Has anyone had this done yet? Parts costs seem straightforward but I’m getting labor estimates from 2 hours to 9 hours total for the work. That’s a really wide swing!
BTW, we are at 8 years and 650 hours on the engine. No issues with the belt other than age.

 

[American Flyer]

Just had it done last year on our D4-300. It is pretty straight forward but near impossible for one person to tighten the belt due to limited access. Also, be sure you get a mechanic who will actually use a torque wrench to tighten the belt as instructed in the service manual. I went through three mechanics who said it was “good enough” to just get it tight. Belt kept squealing until I found a mechanic who would do it right. It took two people to get it tight enough and secure the bolts at the same time. I would say two hours or less for one person except for the last 5 minutes of tightening. It takes a lot more torque than an average fan belt. I did not replace the tensioner as this was not required by the service manual. Did yours have a problem?

 

[markzorad]

We just had both belts (D6-440 500 hours) done last week by Pacific Power in Kent.
Even though the belts were in good shape, I alway err on the side of caution as we go way offshore at times.
Great Volvo mechanics and it appears as if they did a great job but have not done a sea trial yet.
Because it is so difficult to get to them, it wasnt cheap....