The 2005 Nissan Maxima comes equipped with two different drive belts on the front of the engine. The front belt is a serpentine belt. The serpentine belt controls the air conditioner pump and the alternator. The back belt is a regular drive belt. The drive belt controls the power steering pump. The serpentine belt is tensioned by an adjustment pulley between the alternator and the crankshaft. Replace the serpentine belt if there are pieces missing from the belt or if the belt has a lot of cracks within the ribs of the belt.
Park the 2005 Nissan Maxima and engage the emergency brake. Raise the hood and secure it in place.
Locate the front belt on the front of the engine. The front belt is the serpentine belt that is wrapped around the alternator pulley, air conditioner pulley and the crankshaft pulley. Then, locate the adjustment pulley between the alternator and the crankshaft.
Loosen the lock nut in the middle of the adjustment pulley with the 3/8-inch drive ratchet and a socket.
Turn the adjustment bolt at the top of the adjustment pulley counterclockwise to loosen the tension from the serpentine belt.
Pull the serpentine belt out of all three pulleys. Then, pull the belt around the fan blades and out of the engine bay.
Slide the new serpentine belt around the fan blades and onto the three front pulleys.
Turn the adjustment bolt clockwise with the ratchet and socket to tighten the belt to the proper tension. Once the belt is tight, push down on the belt with the palm of your hand. If the belt has more than a half-inch of slack in the belt, continue to tighten the belt until it has no more than a half-inch of slack.
Tighten the lock nut down tight with the ratchet and socket. Then, crank the 2005 Nissan Maxima and let the engine run for 30 seconds. Turn the engine off and check the tension on the belt again. Close the hood.
