My E30 race car killed its alternator so that I had to charge the battery between sessions this past weekend to keep it running. It is just the v-reg and I can fix the one I have but... its a race car. It does not need a giant, heavy, powerful charging system - it needs enough to crank over and run injectors, ecu, fuel pump and a fan during a weekend.
What tiny, light, little japanese alternator am I looking for?
I remember the alternator for my toyota corolla - engine 4afe - was barely bigger than a softball...dont know any specs, but theyre all over in u pull it junk yards
I think I've heard that Samurai alternators are pretty tiny.
The voltage regulator is pretty cheap, and the Bosch alternators are pretty durable and trouble free otherwise. Buying a new alternator and coming up with a bracket to hold it could be expensive. How much is it worth to drop just a few pounds?
stuart in mn wrote: The voltage regulator is pretty cheap, and the Bosch alternators are pretty durable and trouble free otherwise. Buying a new alternator and coming up with a bracket to hold it could be expensive. How much is it worth to drop just a few pounds?
I can whip up a bracket pretty easily and the factory unit is pretty heavy and gross overkill for a car that has no real electrical demands. Every little bit of weight helps when you don't have a lot of power to work with.
samurai and chevy sprint densos are tiny little units. 55amp and easy to wire. I replaced the generator in my fiat with one.
At all the big hotrod swap meets I keep finding a really tiny.. Like half a fosters lager can sized bosch alternator that is 45-50 amps and a one wire unit. Always cheaper in the gaudy chrome finish though. From $125 on up depending on the vendor. look around for that one.
used an alternator from a 4afe on my 4age... had to rig it for a longer tension bracket though... the bolt location is on the other side of the alternator (inch or 2 away)... plug n play on the mr2... and I had one laying around... with a lifetime warranty to boot haha...
Geo Metro. Same as the Sammi/Sprint.
Don't overtighten it.
Go to your local alternator repair shop and ask them. They're the pros on alternators, right?
David
DWNSHFT wrote: Go to your local alternator repair shop and ask them. They're the pros on alternators, right? David
I thought you guys were ;)
Seriously, look at 1st Gen RX-7 alternators. Not much in the way of electronics in these cars. I just changed mine out, it was around $70 new, one wire plus a pigtail. Also you can get a double-ribbed pulley for it from Racing Beat if you need 2 belts. (The rotaries do when you pull the A/C and/or air pump).
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