This is getting ridiculous now. I have had my car for about 3 months and last month a belt started squealing, here's the backstory.
After I bought the car, after about a month I got all the belts replaced as well as the water pump. Then in November after a few weeks of the new alternator belt squealing it failed on the way back from work. I had a new one put on, that one started squealing as well so i tried a new alternator thinking the bearing was causing the squealing. And today, on the way to work, it is still squealing and on a more regular basis. It's squealing at idle, puts the charge light on and won't go away unless I restart the car and immediately pull away. So now, every time I stop, I need to switch the car off and back on. I really need a solution here badly or I will just sell the car. Someone please help me.

The tensioner wich the alternator plays, might be not so tightened and the belt could be loose and squealing.
The belt can be worn out(even if new).
The pulley of the alternator could be worn out, bended..
The pulley of the Water pump can be worn out, bend and such..
Even the pulley of the crankshaft can be worn out..
All these things should be inspected..
The other plausible cause is if someone has removed the dust/splash plastic guard wich prevents the belts from splashes when there is rains,pot holes full of water and such.
Even tightly belts cannot withstand the water splashing them directly, they will squeal.
Check all these and see where is the problem.
Good luck!

I will keep this in mind. I really don't want to sell my BA but if I can't get it fixed I will need to. It's been a very expensive 3 months so far.

Hi Borys,

I had to remove/replace all my BA belts lots of times when I was fixing the P/S (you have to remove them to replace the P/S pump). Getting it right can be a pain.

If ALL the belts were replaced, are you sure the problem is the alternator belt? If the charge light is coming on, then I assume it is, but all the belts run very close to each other, so check the others aren't fitted badly, or touching each other.

* Check it's the correct alternator belt (I was sold the wrong one. Don't trust mechanics and parts sales people who don't know the car. Their parts catalogues are also often incorrect. I have experience with this, they can't even sell me the correct battery!!) If you have an old belt, compare it (or if you have a friend with a BA, compare it to their belt). Check the part number.

* If the alternator belt isn't tight enough, or if is TOO tight, it will squeal like a dying pig (mine did). The tension is very specific, you can very easily over-tighten or under-tighten it. When I fixed mine, I loosened it off, then tightened it again, a quarter turn at a time: a quarter turn, then turn on the engine and see if it squeals. If it does, turn off the engine, try another quarter turn. Try the engine again. It could take a while, but if it is incorrect tension causing the problem, doing it this way will help you find the perfect spot.

(You probably know this anyway, but the tightening screw is on the top of the belt tensioner, next to the oil dipstick. Mine is a 10mm head).

I hope this helps - if it's just belts then the problem CAN be solved quite easily, don't sell the car over it!!

S