In a message dated 3/29/04 6:58:37 PM, vwtankgirl@YAHOO.COM writes:

<< So my question is, has anyone heard of belts just
going bad or having a defect and going bad. >>

I have heard it and it sounded like a shot going off.  Last year The day
after I installed new belts (German, at that) I was rolling down the highway when
BANG!!!, the alternator belt broke.  Of course I was rushing to make an
appointment 100 miles from home.  The water pump belt had also been kicked off and
the oil dipstick tube had a new look to it.  I swapped the remaining belts
around to go down the road until I could do some impromptu repair work in the
parking lot of a parts store.  When I looked at the nose of the engine with all
that stuff hanging off of it, I felt lucky that some serious damage had not been
done.

George