[alster]

Planning to replace the Serpentine belt as it's original and looks brown and dried out. I also this past winter on sub 30° days, noticed a few times, when the car was cold-started, I heard an almost "electrical" buzz-- like feedback you might get from a radio/amp not properly grounded.. IOW, the pitch of the buzz/whine would increase with RPMs. (The radio was NOT on.) This literally took almost 30 mins of driving to finally disappear each time. (way past the car being warmed up). Obviously I haven't heard this issue since winter time.

As you can see in the pic below, the arrow on the Tensioner is a bit to the right but still in "range" with the short rectangle. (also the pulley condition)

tl;dr: Question is, does that Tensioner pulley need to be changed? It looks discolored/brown also (rusted on the inside track like a rotor?) .. Not sure if it is rust or what. I suppose when I get the belt off I'll see if it spins freely, but not sure about that coloration.

Also, it looks like the Power Steering pump has had some fluid leak out of it a bit. Not sure if it's from an o-ring, or a hose, or if the pump is on it's way out-

(view looking toward back of car)

(view looking toward front of car)

The alternator isn't wet and fluid isn't pouring out, but I suppose it might be slowly seeping out..

--I had a thread this past winter where I was hearing some creaking on turns, but the shop I brought it to couldn't diagnose anything because at the time, I'd noticed my PS fluid was sitting below the low mark, and adding some had (eventually) rectified the issue. I subsequently also had lower ball joints and front&pas motor mounts replaced. I haven't heard the creaking since then.

I'm not keen on replacing the PS Pump rn as a new pump isn't cheap and I've recently put a lot into the car (culminating w a starter, and a 1000 mi drive)

Thoughts?

 

[Cepega]

Clean up the oily spots around the power steering and monitor meanwhile. Don't judge the pulley by it's color, I have 2017 v6 that has its pulley in same color due to one the ac hose runs right above it and condensation drips right onto it.
Remove serpentine belt and inspect all of the pulleys for play, I had to replace the idler pulley on 06 v6 due to play in it, bought from dealer for about 30 dollars, price tends to be about the same dealer locally vs dealer online as the saving will be eaten by shipping costs. Almost same goes for the belt, in many cases aftermarket prices were about the same or even higher than dealer OEM part. Folks on here informed me that Bando was the OEM belt supplier for the 4 banger and verified Mitsuboshi was the OEM supplier for the 6 cyl engines.

 

[nonezone]

Based on the leakage pattern, should be PS fluid leaked from the o-ring(the lower pressure hose to the ps pump). Replace it with a new orange o-ring instead of the original black o-ring. Honda suggested the new o-ring. Clean the leakage. You should find the buzz sound gone. And inspect the belt, if it is still the original one, maybe the time for a new one.

 

[nonezone]

Also drain and refill the PS fluid reservoir several times. The fluid has been contaminated. This will extend the life of your ps pump.

 

[alster]

Thanks for the suggests!

 

[frogvtec]

Agreed with what's been said. If you're on a budget, just go ahead and change the belt. As you've indicated, the tensioner is still well positioned, so just replace the belt and see.
P/S: Clean up spots and monitor. A fluid change will help prolong the pump. IMHO, as long as you don't have to top off too often, doesn't drip severely, and you're getting P/S, you should last until it really craps out.

My P/S has seepage like yours, but no crude crust build up, and no need for top-off. I just learn to live with it and replace it if I really need to.

 

[nonezone]

Agreed with what's been said. If you're on a budget, just go ahead and change the belt. As you've indicated, the tensioner is still well positioned, so just replace the belt and see.
P/S: Clean up spots and monitor. A fluid change will help prolong the pump. IMHO, as long as you don't have to top off too often, doesn't drip severely, and you're getting P/S, you should last until it really craps out.

My P/S has seepage like yours, but no crude crust build up, and no need for top-off. I just learn to live with it and replace it if I really need to.

The seepage can be stopped by replacing the o-ring. You can check the HONDA TSB. Very easy to replace, took me 5 minutes. I replaced mine several years ago.
Amazon.com: OEM Honda 91345-RDA-A01 - O-Ring (13.0X1.9) : Automotive