Can this really happen?...Belt snap, and then dead engine?...
 

Guy lost his Boxster's serpentine belt on way to shop for A/C work, and then engine is gone? I mean I guess if he kept driving, but really?...I thought the video was gonna feature another famous IMS issue, but no. Feel like maybe the shop steered him wrong?

https://youtu.be/HraAyX4PR9w

No belt, no water pump = overheated = seized engine.

Hmmm, but I've had broken water pumps before...just stop driving and call a tow. Guess this guy kept driving.

I had my belt snap. I stopped driving the car and towed it, new belt and engine ran fine.

Appreciate that the owner is no mechanic but the text overlay at the beginning says engine burned out. I read that as overheated and damaged beyond economical repair.

On modern all alloy engines, snapped serpentine belts have probably claimed more engines than any other issue such as the IMS issue in the M96/97. Completely avoidable, but also very common.

Don't you get a warning by way of engine/coolant indicator light on the dash when temps get too high? Why would anyone not just stop and pull over instead of keep driving?

Sure, that and the temperature gauge needle would peg full hot.
He'd have had to look at the gauges periodically and know what it meant...

Damn shame, such a nice looking low mile car being relegated to roller status.

I see a tow hook in the video, guy drove it till it burned up and then towed it, idiot.

Most folks don't really understand what they are being told by the gauges. The engine is in a no air flow place and the cooling system is quite complex. Once the pump stopped pumping, it wasn't long before something bad happened. He could have just been trying to get it off the highway to a safe place and once he shut it down, that was all she wrote.

A sad ending for sure.

Had it happened in north east or mid-west this past week he might've had a slim shot when he kept driving w/ such cool ambient temps... In Miami Beach though his odds were low, very low...

Such a same and so easily preventable had he once glanced at the guages

:(

What is an appropriate maintenance interval for the belt: time / kilometres?

I believe mine is already five years old

As I recall there there is a bright red light on the temp gauge .....not sure if if it gives adequate warning of overheating. I would think it comes on you are already in deep trouble

As cheap as the belt is I would just replace it if you are even thinking about it. You can just look at it and see if there is any cracking and stretch.

Every 60k miles for polyrib belt. I changed it at 50k for peace of mind and then kept the old one as a spare in the front trunk in case I break down on a Sunday when no parts dept are open and I'm left without a belt.

Change procedure:
60k Mile Scheduled Maintenance (60k, 120k, 180k, 240k, 300k, 360k)

Will do....good suggestions! All should have a spare...

I bought....
 

.....my 986 in 2015.

Even though she was a 2004 with only 25,000 miles on her, I changed the serpentine belt AND all the idler pulleys upon purchase.

My technician advised me that it was probably overkill to do this, but followed my instructions and did it for me.

Afterward, he told me that it was probably a good move, because one of the idler pulleys was a bit crunchy.

I've seen an example on the forums, FWIW, of an idler pulley that seized and the serpentine belt rubbing created enough friction heat to ignite the belt, which then burned the car down.

Belts are cheap, cars are expensive.

I'd change the darn thing every 50,000 miles no matter what.

A spare won't help if you aren't mindful of the gauges and what's going on. A read thru the owners manual will tell you what flashing lights mean. This belt failure also killed the generation of 12 volts and the AC which would have also shown some red lights on the dash.

Vaguely relevant,but legend has it that with a BMW inline 6 if a water pump fails on highway, you've only seconds to stop the motor before you have a warped cylinder head. In any event, moral of story is stop motor asap--yes it's inconvenient but wishful thinking doesn't help.

And, your first dashboard indication of belt failure is going to be the alternator charging light--it likely means something more serious than some charging system problem. That, in fact, is a pretty silly conclusion.

I've had a BMW with an inline 6 leave me stranded with a failed water pump. I turned off the car (but can't remember how long I waited before shut down). Car was fine though. The warning lights should be enough warning to make you turn off the engine. Not sure why people keep on driving.

Reminds me of my oldest daughter's first car, a Buick.

She and her boyfriend we driving up to our Maine farm on the Maine turnpike when the oil pressure lamp went on, she kept driving. Car started smoking, she kept driving. Car started making bad noises, she kept driving. A loud bang and the engine stopped, and she was able to coast into a rest area.

She called me and we drove out to see how bad it was. Had to make an illegal U turn on the pike to avoid a lengthy drive to the next exit. Discovered that AAA had already sent a tow truck to pick up the car and he had made an illegal U turn to the opposite rest area. Made another U turn and climbed up on the tow truck and popped the hood. Saw light through the engine block. Picked up the kids and made yet another U turn. Had the car towed home and replaced the engine. You can't destroy an engine more thoroughly than she had done.

The joys of parenthood!