vs
Alternator OEM BMW or Duralast
From personal experience, I'd recommend the duralast gold alternator from autozone. I originally got the duralast regular alternator but I had to change it out it least 2 more times under warranty. The last time I just decided to upgrade to the gold version since I was sick of replacing the alternator, and it's been great for over 2 years now. Remanufactured ones are usually junk, get a new one like the duralast gold one. FYI what usually gives out first is the built in voltage regulator, that's what went wrong every time with the cheaper remanufactured alternator. There might be other good ones out there but that's my experience
Pros: great for over 2 years
Cons: remanufactured ones are junk
We just replaced the wife's X three weeks ago. Had the same problem you had with a battery light and brake light. Ended going to AutoZone when we were in vacation and got a Duralast Gold and had a local mechanic do the install.
Vehicle:
Nissan
Paid $1,214 out the door. Alternator... No experience with cars and don\u2019t feel comfortable installing myself. Based off local availability, I can\u2019t imagine an option I would\u2019ve been happier with. Of course it\u2019s overpriced, but I can justify the spend based off how seamless the experience was.
Pros: seamless experience
Cons: overpriced
Vehicle:
BMW
If you go to autozones website and plug your car info in, what price does it give you for the duralast gold alternator?
I want to hear an opinion on getting a duralast alternator and popping it in my n52 I have heard very mixed things about these parts some work fine others are trash.
Cons: mixed reviews, some trash
IMO duralast doesn\u2019t last no where near as long as a good quality Bosch/Denso alternator.
Pros: good quality Bosch/Denso
Cons: duralast doesn't last
Wouldn't recommend AutoZone based on my experience. Had a duralast gold fail on me and had to get a replacement one.
Cons: duralast gold fail
Made the mistake of buying the duralast, first one lasted a couple months, and the second one is dying, only charging the battery at highway speeds, just like the first one before it died.
Cons: died after a couple months
We have a lady with an infinity that comes in once a year to get her duralast alternator replaced.
Cons: replaced once a year
Vehicle:
Infiniti
I bought a Duralast for my ‘99 E55 a few years ago. It didn’t work so I pulled the rectifier off of it, put it on the original one, which put out at 14.2 v back in the car. I returned the Duralast one after I made the old rectifier look like new. The shaft rotation on the Duralast felt gritty, too.
Cons: didn’t work, shaft rotation gritty
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