Ok, I am an idiot. I have had my Alta 15% pulley and CAI for about two weeks and i'm loving the performance boost. The boost kicks in earlier and harder and I love the loudness and higher pitch of the SC.

But yesterday I did something stupid. I added some oil and drove off without replacing the oil cap. The cap itself didn't damage anything - I found it sitting on the ground by my garage. Fortunately I decided to check the oil level again after only about 10 minutes of driving, so that was when I noticed the cap was missing. But some drops of oil had sprayed up onto the hood liner and some parts close to the oil cap area had oil on them.

My question is: Is it possible that some oil could have gotten on to my belt and SC pulley and/or crank pulley? It seems to me that this could result in some belt slippage and loss of boost. And I am pretty sure I am noticing that the boost is not kicking in as earlier or as hard. I think the whine may even be slightly lower in pitch untill it fully spins up. If this isn't possible, then I am just being neurotic about it, but it seems like too much of a coincidence to ignore.

If I am having belt slippage, is it possible to simply clean the belt and pulleys and reinstall? My dealer would be cool with doing that. Would that be an expensive service?

Thanks, and yes I do appreciate that I am an idiot.

 

Make sure your oil cap is on first , then spray some Simple Green or any degreaser in the area under the hood you suspect oil to be, then rinse it off.
Try to avoid spraying water right into or on the electrical components and connections. You can use compressed air to blow excess water out of connections if you need.

 

Thanks sfjames2. BTW I got my pulley & intake done at Bay Bridge Motors while I was inthe Bay area. Maybe you suggested them when I asked on the forum, I can't recall. Anyway they were very professional and fun to talk to.

Can I spray Simple Green directly onto the belt & pulleys? Wouldn't it be necessary to remove the belt to thoroughly clean the pulleys?

 

Of course its possible that the oil has got on the belt & Pulley but probably unlikely if there were only some spots around the oil cap. But like SFJames said just degrease and hose off. No need to remove anything.

 

Pardon my ignorance guys, these are sincere questions... I just don't see how I could get Simple Green all around and under the belt and all around the pulleys, and then rinse it off, without removing anything. Is there a simple technique to accomplish this?

 

If you realy want to get in there, remove passenger side wheel then the plastic wheel well housing and go to town.
I do not think it's necessary, but then again don't know how much oil your dealing with. Just repeat the process til it's clean with either route.

 

Yes, you can spray the belts and pulleys directly without messing them up too btw.

 

Great, that info helps a lot. Thanks! I'm an idiot!

 

Forgetting the cap is pretty common. My roommate did that on his first oil change. For his next trick, he forgot the drain plug while refilling. I pointed this out when the oil started running down the driveway. Live and learn.

 

Woohoo, the Simple Green treatment seems to have worked! I am thinking a bit of oil must have splashed onto the belt way down at the bottom where I think the business side of it is exposed. I think, anyway. I sprayed and rinsed, then turned the motor on and off again to expose different parts of the belt and pulleys, sprayed and rinsed again, repeated this a few times. When it was still very wet it emitted a couple of rubbery squeaky chirps. As soon as it was dry, the supercharger was screaming at its proper pitch and it was pulling hard again. Man that is amazing. Thanks for the tips you guys.

You should see me now, before I close the bonnet I stand there staring at everything for a moment to make sure everything's in place - no more idiot moves like forgetting the oil cap, haha!