Upgrading the Alternators; GM + wiring?

[vex]

Alright, so I know individuals have swapped in 100AMP FD amps into the FC before, but who here has swapped in a GM style Alternator? Supposedly a CS130 fits into our cars without issue (minus of course the wiring deal).

Anyone care to do a small write up for wiring in various types of Alternators? For instance, 1 Wire alternators, Domestic, FD, FC, etc, etc.

Most importantly I am curious how to wire in the Domestic and 1 wire alternators--mainly because of the inexpensiveness of it. Though I do have a broken down FD alt chilling on my shelf that I may just end up rebuilding and wiring in... but that's another story.

[RotaryProphet]

My new motor sports a 160 amp GM 1 wire alternator. It doesn't quote "Fit", but the bracket to bolt it into basically the stock location is relatively simple to make out of some steel flat.

[vex]

My new motor sports a 160 amp GM 1 wire alternator. It doesn't quote "Fit", but the bracket to bolt it into basically the stock location is relatively simple to make out of some steel flat.

Pics/Wiring diagrams on how you hooked it up?

[Akagis_White_Comet]

I'm currently running a 130 amp 3.8L Taurus alternator as the 100 amp FD alt I had couldn't feed the power-hungry 2-speed Taurus e-fan. For the FD and Taurus Alts, wiring is as follows.

http://i619.photobucket.com/albums/tt277/Akagis_White_Comet/AlternatorUpgrade.jpg

The alt referenced in the pic comes from either a 3.0 or 3.8L OHV 92-95 Taurus/Sable/Continental. these are the ones with the DIN cupholders in them (another nice item to grab at the junkyard). To mount it, you'll need two small pieces of flat iron, the OE spacer and 9 M10 washers, and a dual sheave pulley from Racing Beat or Mazdatrix. Swap the pulley onto the Taurus alt, it should go on by hand.

Drill two 1/2" holes in the flat iron. I can't remember the exact spacing, but it's around 1.5" center to center. Repeat for the other piece. Now bolt one piece to the OE Alt mount in front and attach the Taurus alt through the other hole. Put the OE spacer on the OE mount bolt with 5 washers and slip the other flat iron piece on the back. It should line up perfectly, so give it the proper locknuts. Leave them about 1/4" from the back flat iron piece so you'll have space to nudge the Alt in any direction for the next step.

Now. remove the adjuster strap and reattach it backwards loosely. Put the strap bolt through and put the remaining 4 washers on it and bolt it up. It should line up perfectly. Getting the belt on can be a pain, but the dual sheave pulley and leaving the 2 mount bolts loose makes it MUCH easier. Get it lined up on the passenger side and turn the whole engine over by hand while pushing on the belt to get it in the second sheave. Repeat to move it into the proper alignment, just like on a 10-speed bike. To adjust the belt, loosen both strap bolts and the top mount bolt, then pull/push the Alt up. Once you got the belt on and everything wired up, torque to spec.

When using a Taurus alt in other cars, The A terminal is the sensor wire (straight line to battery) and the I terminal is the ignition switch wire (12v switched).

Last, to remove the belt, loosen both strap bolts and both mount bolts. Push the belt towards the front of the car on the passenger side while turning the engine over by hand. Get it in the front sheave and repeat.

[RETed]

What I worry about using any off-the-shelf alternator is the RPMs tolerance...
Most (GM) motors can't rev that high, and I question if the bearings can handle the revs what our motor can regularly produce?
This is one of the reasons why I went with the FD alternator myself.
...although I'm itching to throw my Toyota Cressida 130A unit in my FC just for shits and giggles.


-Ted

[djmtsu]

Might want to talk to Garfinkle. I believe he has a custom GM 200amp alternator with upgraded bearings and everything.

[infernosg]

Sub.

Looking to go with an electric fan (or two) in the future so this should be a good reference. What's the amp draw on the Taurus fan?

[TitaniumTT]

I sent Ihor (IR Performance) a dissasembled and powdercoated FD frame and alt and he had it re-wound and tested to something like 140A. The alt runs flawlessly once you rev it past ~3.5k and it kicks in. 14V+ @ idle with the lights, fan, and big ass stereo cranking. Bolts in, basically plugs in to S5 wiring and handles the RPM's. Brian is very pleased with that alt and would do it again. My only complaint is that it needs to be rev'ed up to kick in.

[vex]

I sent Ihor (IR Performance) a dissasembled and powdercoated FD frame and alt and he had it re-wound and tested to something like 140A. The alt runs flawlessly once you rev it past ~3.5k and it kicks in. 14V+ @ idle with the lights, fan, and big ass stereo cranking. Bolts in, basically plugs in to S5 wiring and handles the RPM's. Brian is very pleased with that alt and would do it again. My only complaint is that it needs to be rev'ed up to kick in.

I've heard of that happening before, but I can't remember why they do it. I *think* it's to save the electronics as the heat production goes up, but I can't say for certain. What I'd like is an alternator that can be used at idle with out dropping in voltage with everything electronic going in the car, then having the same benefit while I'm driving. I'm wondering if the only way that could be done is with two alternators wired in, but that, to me anyways, seems to be going around your elbow to get to your ass.

As for GM/domestic alternators, there are some models that can safely be used up to 7500RPM or higher, but it would take away from the FS of the unit in total. I'd have to crunch some numbers to be certain, but I don't think it would be too much if an alternator is rated for an engine with a normal redline of 7500RPM (say a corvette), and then put on an engine that is able to rev to 9000RPM.

Out of curiosity how many amps does the RX8 alternator put out?