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I couldn't find anything under darkstar alternator. General search seems show that the only issue is that you might go through a few alternators as the remanufactured ones tend to crap out. This has got me thinking I just want to change the bearing, regulator, and clean it with contact solution for $80 vs paying 2X - 5X to switch it for a remanufactured one that might have significantly more miles.
@extanker...good thing these cars aren't worth anything
Thanks Schnell. It appears the Bosch part # is AL0812X. I see remans going to for $300 - $400. O'reilly and Autozone are selling their reman Bosch for $153 with lifetime warranty (with core). Those should be fine right?
Sorry, what is "w / p"?
Get AL0815N, brand new about $280. It's the stock 997 alternator but it fits 996 as well and has 20A more current.
Al0812X is a reman. "X" means reman.
Thanks. Given the mileage, I'm thinking about taking the gamble and just replacing the voltage regulator. I can get this bench tested at an autoparts store right? I have to wait a week for the belt anyway.
Heads up - Continental Belts (835K6) are are $11 on Rock Auto right now.
Getting the pulley off could be an issue? Do you have the tool?
Originally Posted by mrjonger
I couldn't find anything under darkstar alternator. General search seems show that the only issue is that you might go through a few alternators as the remanufactured ones tend to crap out. This has got me thinking I just want to change the bearing, regulator, and clean it with contact solution for $80 vs paying 2X - 5X to switch it for a remanufactured one that might have significantly more miles.
@extanker...good thing these cars aren't worth anything
I just spent the better part of an hour tapping on the bolt to the idler pulley with rubber mallet while intermittently spraying Liquid Wrench. Alternator is still not loose, is there a better way to do this?
Use Kroil.Let is soak in overnight
It is very difficult to hit the target.You need to study the parts manual to see what part you ned to aim at and would need a small LED to illuminate the area.
Loosed the bolt and undo it so there is at least 1/4" clearance between the underside of the bolt head and the alternator.Be careful with brutish hammer blows - you could break something. The vibration from an air tool with a blunt punch fitted may be useful?
I also noticed that the tutorial is clockwise whereas the Pelican is counter clockwise. My thought is that I should be rotating counterclockwise on the vertical plane and clockwise on the horizontal plane to twist it out.
The burn is that I paid the plumber a $100 the other day to change a sprinkler head in 5 minutes while I'm trying to save money here trying to tapping a bolt for an inordinate amount of time like a circus monkey.
EDIT - Gonna have to wait a week for kroil. Apparently you can mix automatic transmission fluid and acetone to make your own? I don't know how you can control all the variables of rusting a nut, but I'm sicking of driving my back up car so I'm gonna try it. Thing below is floating around on the internet when I googled kroil vs pb blaster.
Machinist's Workshop Magazine (March/April or May/June, 2007) actually tested penetrants for break out torque on rusted nuts. Significant results! They are below, as forwarded by an ex-student and professional machinist, Bud Baker.
They arranged a subjective test of all the popular penetrants with the control being the torque required to remove the nut from a "scientifically rusted" environment.
ATF+Acetone
Yes it works ! But research 2 things - the Flash point of Acetone and it's power as a solvent for plastics .Be very,very careful .
Maybe try accessing the spherical nut(the problem) from above/behind? Use your Liquid Wrench with a longer straw ?
And do grease to outer surface when you refit it :-).
I'm about to put the alternator back and notice that one of the connections seems to have some bits missing. Is this normal or does this connection need to be replaced?
Does it have the metal part still in place in the lower part of the terminal? Does it lock in place securely? It is a standard Bosch alternator connector so should be easy to source a replacement with pigtails.
Maybe this helps?Plenty more sources like this if you search. http://www.repairconnector.com/produ...-Pigtails.html http://store.alternatorparts.com/c12...connector.aspx
How did you finally succeed in removing the nut?
Actually looks like how it's supposed to be. Noticed the top while looking for the part number. I tapped for another hour and it wouldn't budget. So I took a wrench, used the engine block as a fulcrum as support, I pushed up on the alternator from underneath . It took like 2 minutes and was pretty easy. If I can't get the alternator back on, I'll soak the brushing in liquid wrench until tomorrow and try to tap some extra clearance. Thanks for all your help Schnell!
Unfortunately, a regulator I ordered turned out to Taiwanese part. I'm going to try it. Hopefully it's fine.
For what it's worth, it appears that the Voltage regulator on the alternator was the culprit. I also changed the ground strap as it was very stiff. Battery voltage now reads 12.4V with engine off and jumps to 14.3V with the engine on, and stays above 14 with the lights and A/C while the engine is cold. The voltage drops to high 13's after car is warmed up.
Some helpful links in addition to the darkstar link posted above.
FYI - local dealer wanted $730 in parts + labor for alternator replacement. The Bosch branded alternator that Ahsai mentioned was $380. The regulator was $40. I also replaced the serpentine belt ($10 on sale) and ground strap ($40). You'll need a 24mm wrench to release the tension on the serpentine belt ($10 for ratchet attachment). I wish I did this first, but the first thing I changed was the battery ($200). I also bought a free wheel hub ($40 INA brand) and the freehub tool
06-01-2017, 10:06 PM
