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Thread: Alternator woes

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    Re: Alternator woes

    Deng thats no good i will keep an eye on it. Im not trying to step on any toes but im pretty sure loosening that bolt and moving the bracket out of the way is a step in the "change your alternator" post on here,it did help make room for the job. Hah all i can say is i hope my van is good

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    Re: Alternator woes

    I'll have to look at that post (I didn't write it). And you are correct, loosening that bolt and swiveling the bracket shouldn't effect things..............unless we're talking about 30 year old equipment that might have failing gaskets and/or otherwise be in a poor state...........then maybe it could be an issue . I personally much prefer the design where that adjustment bracket mounts to a dedicated stud (one that doesn't have a bunch of other stuff going on). It is what it is though. Even with the design we have this is a relitively rare issue. FWIW, I always left that bracket alone. Once the alternator adjustment bolt and the bottom mount bolt is removed the alternator can be easlily removed without touching that adjustment bracket. Tim

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    Re: Alternator woes

    So after some time it appears i do have a leak at the altenator adjustment bracket the leak seems to be following the flow of the arrow in the picture i have not noticed any mixture of coolant and oil.. Is there any other spots i should check before i have to take apart everything and attempt this repair.
    Attached Images Attached Images  

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    Re: Alternator woes

    There is a weep hole in the housing for the WP shaft. Sometimes if/when the water pump seal fails coolant will leak from that, so check that before ripping in. You may just need a new water pump. Tim

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    Re: Alternator woes

    I pulled my water pump off and replaced it and there was definetly evidence of a leak from the weep holes. Two of my bolts had some brown "gunk" on them though im jist wondering if this is the sign of an interior leak, or something worse??

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    Re: Alternator woes

    Hi, I'm New here and I want to upgrade my alternator to the exact same model as TIM. There are 2 processes I'm not clear on. 1st, I will be upgrading my ground wire and my battery to alternator cables to 0 awg welding. The part in not clear on is how do I replace the battery cable (s)? Can I just leave the stock alternator battery cable disconnected and then run the new cable straight from the alternator to 250a fuse to battery? Or do I run the new cable to the + box then to the battery? Or is there another best option I'm missing? Also do I need to get the clip that replaces Chevy to Toyota plug? I didn't catch if TIM went that route. Also what do I do with the 2 wires that hold the wire fuse? Do I hook up directly to the 250 fuse? Last where do the blue and yellow wires that are hanging out of the upgraded alternator in discussion. That TIM has in the pics. They are shown hanging so no idea where they go. I think it was covered but I can't remember. Sorry for the 21 ?'s but maybe it will clear up any confusion later on.

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    Re: Alternator woes

    I would remove or tape up and ignore the old alternator output wire (the big one that went to the + box). Then I would run a new large wire (size determined by alternator output) directly from the alternator output post to the battery. I would also recommend a fuse or fusible link in that wire. Fuse size should be determined by alternator output. If the alternator is a standard CS-144 (output 140A), then the wire should be minimum 2 gauge and the fuse should be ~160A. Note: fuse should be approx 10% larger than alternator max output, but smaller than wire's max amp rating. Of course any time the positive cable is upgraded, the ground/negative cable will need to be upgraded to the same degree.

    You will need the harness piece to the CS-144 alternator. Those are common and can be found almost anywhere car parts are sold. Regarding my CS-144 alternator. It was custom built to be a higher output of 250A (I think you can go as high as 400A on these), so I needed to run bigger cable on mine. Also, the blue & yellow wires you're referring to are a custom add-on (by me) to bypass the alternator's internal regulator for welding. If you're not planning on welding with your alternator, then just ignore those. Tim

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    Re: Alternator woes

    I have found a high output alternator for the van no modifications bolt right on 240ampreges. Company is US Alternator. I messaged them to send me a picture. Without the picture it will be almost pointless to buy because of the power steering fluid drip. If it's the same construction as the stock alternator then it's not good unless yourig a shield or whatever for the alternator won't get ruined by the van fluids. Anyways I am not clear on what to do with the white wires that are connected to the positive battery post. The ones that go from the battery to the fuse box or + box. I think my alternator is on the verge on failure. I was driving and the radiator light came on and the whole colum if icons on the lest side of the radiator icon. The lights on the dash turned off but they re appear off and on while driving. About 20 min . I'm guessing it gets hot and fails. The cause was either fluid which I inspected for and noticed a slight atain on top of the alternator. It's not bad as at all compared to the ones I've seen. But also I run a car audio system that total about 800 watts rms. Which is way over the alternators rating. So I might and most likely damaged it. I need to know details about how to go about upgrading my alternator. I have read the this thread also the wire harness replacement thread. It leaves out a few details in the thread . I need to know what changes will happen to the + box after the alternator upgrade. Also need to know what do I do with the two wires that I had mentioned before. another member had posted a pic of the wires. They are the white ones that one is larger in diameter than the other. It is the wires that have wire fuse. I have no idea what to do with these.
    Last edited by Bevo1kanobe; 07-05-2017 at 11:19 AM.

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    Re: Alternator woes

    Another thing I just read , Tim you said the blue and yellow wires was an add on by you to accommodate your welder. And if you're not planning on welding then forget that part. Well I'm not welding but am planning on getting a 260 amp high output alternator and running 2 amplifiers that produce about 2200 watt total together. That is a lot of amp draw. So do you recommend the same add on for my use or do I still do get about it? Thanks in advance.

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    Re: Alternator woes

    You would ignore that. The only reason for those wires is so I can bypass the internal regulator to boost voltage for welding. Regardless of amperage, unless you need excessive voltage, leave the internal regulator alone. Tim

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    Re: Alternator woes

    do we know if theres a direct swap alternator from another vehicle that fits our vans? or the same rotor? im looking for a rotor..
    Last edited by boogieman; 12-04-2017 at 03:06 PM.

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    Re: Alternator woes

    Yes, there were many different makes and models from that era that use alternators with the same internal parts. If it's a Denso, and it's 60 - 70A, and it's got the same regulator plug, and it's the same physical size, then everything inside should swap out. The only thing unique about the van's alternator is the mount configuration.......and even that will match up with some other car models. Tim

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    Re: Alternator woes

    i went to the local u pull it and grabbed a bunch of regulators/rectifiers/brushes before realizing my rotor had no continuity..it fried with an aweful electrical burning stench that still reeks in the van. the stator seems fine with continuity among all 4 leads and no shorts to ground, although it stinks pretty bad too. i noticed that there are two different diode and regulators used, i guess the difference between 60 and 70 amps? one only has three diodes and one 4...theres also an extra connection on the regulator for the 3 diode rectifier. the parts i pulled were mainly off of camrys i think, which have almost 12 o clock but more like 11 or 1030 o clock mounts..since theyre gonna wack me for the whole alt ill check to see if it would still fit the van...but i didnt want to get stuck with a rotor that didnt fit my case...all to save a couple bucks...

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    Re: Alternator woes

    I've never swapped rotors, so I can't say for sure.........but I'd be surprised if you can't find one to fit. In my travels I've pulled different (smaller) diode blocks before and was able to successfully make them work in van alternators..........although I do believe they were not as high of capacity. These usually came out of the Tercels and other small economy cars. On those the alternator cases were slightly smaller than the van alternator cases. Tim

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    Re: Alternator woes

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    made it back to the yard and pulled an alternator from a 1991 camry, rotor ohmed out good and diode looked like denso grey, brushes nice, commutator nice and not grooved. $22 +$8 core, $5 tax and enviro fees and im back in business, ill get the 8 buck core back.. just for kicks i mocked up the camry alternator in my 89 4x4 and it fits! it would work..there is less adjustment because of the different case but it was in the window. there are alot of camrys in our yard, not sure why but the good thing is that the alt is really easy to access right on top.

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    Re: Alternator woes

    that's great info boogieman! just for future clarity sake : are you saying we can plug and play a 1991 camry alternator with out any modification?

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    Re: Alternator woes

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    well actually i had to go back to the shop to compare the terminals and it looks like theyre 90° or so off...so there could be an issue with the harness and batt lead length..my 89 doesnt have either of those stock right now so im not sure...ill mock it up again when i have time and do some measuring...

  18. #58
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    Re: Alternator woes

    well bad news sorry for getting anyones hopes up, i got too excited when i mocked up the camry alternator without the diodes attached...the (+) batt terminal goes straight into the block and makes plug and play a no go. good news is that the internals are all the same. my bad...

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    Re: Alternator woes

    I've used the guts of Camry alternators from that year range before. They're a great choice as they are easy to remove (mounted on the top front of a transverse mounted engine). The Camry engine compartment is also well ventilated so they don't get overheated and there is nothing above to drip fluid. Once I snagged one with over 300k miles on it. It was the original alternator and other than worn brushes it was still in great shape. Tim

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    Couple of alternator questions

    Hi, all,

    The current alternator in my '88 4WD Van is an AC Delco, installed in 2015 when my original Denso unit finally quit (after replacing seals in the PS pump so it didn't drip any more, and cleaning the alternator and replacing the brushes). It has started to whistle lately, and while it's still putting out 14.3V+ I don't know how much longer it will last, and I'd like to rebuild my Denso to replace it. The brushes in the Denso are still fine, but I think the diode may be bad and I'd like to buy a new Denso diode block to put in it. I've read many of the alternator threads that mention the diodes but other than the recommendation to pick them up at the pick-and-pull I haven't found a part number or source for a new Denso diode block.

    Is it possible to buy a new Denso diode block?

    I'd be interested in any insights as to the cause of the whistle. I've read in other places that it can indicate the alternator is working too hard. The battery is fairly new (within the last two years) and the whistle is there even when the battery has been fully charged with an AC charger. It goes up in pitch as the RPM goes up, not in a narrow range of RPM like a resonant vibration frequency.

    One thing that started about the same time as the whistle was that the charge light came on. It now only comes on when the van is idling just after a start from cold, and it goes off once the engine is revved above about 1000 rpm the first time. Looking at battery voltage at the same time, when the charge light is on right after the cold start the voltage at the battery terminals is 12.0-12.3 or so, when revved the voltage goes up, eventually reaching 14.3V+, and dropping back into the 13s when allowed to go back to idle.

    Thanks,
    John

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