alternator install questions

[V12BMW]

I was gonna replace my alternator myself, i have some auto know how but not alot. on the do-it-yourself meter from 1-10, im a 5. About how long will this take me, will i have to remove the whole enigine to get to the alternator, and will the job need any special tools? Should i purchase a chilton or haynes repair manual along with the alternator?

[SPAZZ]

dude, really easy. The only problem you might have is getting the bolts to go all the way though from lack of visual. But, a mirror solved that problem really quick. Very easy. Don't be scared.

[Hotsauce]

Alt comes out from the bottom. Obviously disconnect the battery first. It may be necessary tofile the new alt at the pivot bolt hole to get it to fit.

John C.

[V12BMW]

ok thanx guy it is gonna be shipped within the new few days so maybe i'll barrow my brothers digital camera and take pic's to do the how to's. again, thanx for the confidence boost

[mbeach]

You may be able to look up the alternator (GM) upgrade on planetizuzu.

There are some great pictures of someone else's install on the larger alternator.

[V12BMW]

the new alternator should be arriving wedsday or thrusday i should be checking in for a helping hand.

[V12BMW]

i need a picture or a description of how to loosen the pulley so i can replace my alternator.the belt is too tight. how to get it off? allen wrench? how do i adjust the tension of belt?

[V12BMW]

ok i got the hood up and i dont know which pulley is the belt tensioner and how to loosen it to give me some slack. please help

[Moncha]

There is only one belt and it is adjusted by the tensioner. Here's a thread that I searched on serpentine belt (http://www.vehicross.info/forums/showthread.php?t=5764&highlight=BELT+TENSION)

[V12BMW]

do i need a allen wrench for this job? or should i be loosening the bolt about 3inches to the right of the allen wrench bolt?

[Hotsauce]

you aren't loosening the bolt. You are putting a wrench on the bolt to act as an extension of the pivot arm to gain leverage.

When you pull it and feel the spring, you'll understand.

John C.

[Moncha]

It's not an allen type bolt. The tensioner is a 14mm hex head bolt..

[V12BMW]

well thanx for all the help guys. but im gonna go and kill my isuzu dealer tomarrow, about 4 hours it took me to put it in and when I slapped it on the battery light still is on and the TOD still doesn't work(which might be a good thing with WDC coming up now i can peel out) but they told me that an alternator would fix it all and it fixed nothing. so im gonna go raise hell and make a scene until they fix the problem! grrr am i pissed! :evil: :flame2: :flame: :bomb: :warn: :nuke: :deady:

[SGT.BATGUANO]

You might want to charge your battery with a charger before you go on the warpath. It's possible that your last alternator wasn't charging and left the battery in a low charge state and the new alt hasn't brought the level up yet.

You could also try running the engine for 30-45 minutes with ZERO accessories turned on to see if it brings the charge up.

Do you have a voltmeter to check the battery voltage in a running and non-running state?