Fan/serpentine/aux belt snapped

[Londonboy]

Has anyone ever had a fan/serpentine belt snapped whilst driving? Very scary as you lose power steering and sudden loss of engine power.
Just wondering what would cause this? And what can be done to prevent this reoccurring?

Any advice or shared experiences welcome!

[BurrNinja]

If the belt snapped off alternator it will not he able to charge the battery thus reducing everything that requires a charge to run. The car will cut everything to a minimum till battery dies or car stalls out.

Perhaps the belt was worn, dry rotted ?

[Londonboy]

The car went to bmw for a check engine light last month and the garage didn't mention anything about the belt. That's why I'm confused and can't find much info online on those belts.

Mileage is around 54k.

[ECB]

Originally Posted by Londonboy

Any advice or shared experiences welcome!

This happened to me with my S62 in my e39 m5 yrs ago. Not a pleasant experience driving in rush hour traffic. For some time, I could hear a pulley squeaking but could never identify the exact source. The pulley eventually locked up and shredded the belt. I replaced the pulleys and belt and no problems since. So maybe check the pulleys. Good luck!