Beretta.net

My belt is showing a lot of tiny cracks, so I picked up a new belt.  Looked at the engine and it looks tight.  Do I need a special tool to release the tensioner without removing the brackets, or does the brackets need to come off?

You need to take the motor mount apart to get the belt off, in order to do that you need to support the engine with a jack (be sure to use a block of wood between the jack and oil pan or it will shatter) I use a long piece of hollow square metal to push up on the tensioner, and would do this before you take the motor mount off, you'll need to remove your passenger side wheel before you jack the car up.

you dont need to remove the wheel and there is a tensioner tool that makes this job much better, you can even borrow it at advance and autozone if you cant scrounge up the $20 for one.

If you are really stuck you can use your hands.  Had to when my alternator blew on I-5, not easy but possible.  A crescent wrench can be used on the end and most have a square hole for a 1/2 inch breaker bar.

Yeah, the tool is basically a very long breaker bar.  Some tensioners just need to have the square socket plugged into it, some need a socket like an 11 or 13mm or so.  Older ones are bigger.  
I just use a breaker bar with a piece of PVC slid down on the handle.  No problems.