Need a fan belt quick fix? If your fan belt snaps, you might be in for a trouble. However, there is a quick fix that can save you the towing money. Provided it works on your car, of course. Let’s see what the fix is.

Pantyhose

No, I’m not joking. A simple pantyhose could replace your fan belt for a short time and get you safely to the nearest garage. However, this is by no means a long-term solution. This is simply a way to get it fixed for long enough not to leave you stranded.

How to replace the belt with the pantyhose

Remove the belt. If it hasn’t snapped completely, you might need to cut it or, as a worse option, loosen the pulleys enough to be able to remove the belt.

Install the pantyhose.

Make sure you stretch the pantyhose as much as you can, since this is the only way to make enough friction to move the pulleys.  Run the stretched pantyhose around the pulleys and try to place them in several layers if you can. The more layers you have, the bigger the chance it will work and the longer the time it will last.

Tie it with a strong knot and cut off the remaining ends.

When the fix doesn’t work

This depends on the type of the engine and how well you stretched the pantyhose. Provided that the pantyhose is as stretched as it can be, the pantyhose might not work on some new cars with serpentine belts.

Most older cars used V belts each of which controlled its respective accessory. A serpentine belt usually replaces all of these belts, unifying all accessories under its operation. Pulleys on the V belt engines usually have much deeper grooves. This would increase the friction and make the pantyhose more effective. Some serpentine belts come with rather smooth pulleys so pantyhose might simply slide off. Moreover, serpentine belts are far thicker and heavier duty, so pantyhose might not be good enough for the job. Moreover, it would be far more difficult to install.

However, the trick is definitely worth a try. Even if it doesn’t work at first, try to stretch pantyhose more and give it another go. You have nothing to lose and it might be enough to get you to the nearest garage.

Mind the word “nearest”. Do not even dream of attempting to drive your car with a pantyhose instead of a belt, as it will definitely fail quickly. Even if you have a V belt engine and the quick fix works like a charm, it will still just give you a few kilometers before it becomes useless again. Make sure you replace the belt at the first garage you encounter.