vs
Alternator OEM FORD or GENERAL MOTORS
Reviews
I replaced the alternator on my Windstar last month. Disconnect the wires, remove 3 bolts and lift it out. Takes like 10 minutes or less.
Pros: easy to replace, takes 10 minutes
Vehicle:
Ford Windstar
The alternator I have on my 3.0 Ford Ranger does over 130 at idle and 300 at 2,000 engine RPM. It's the same size as factory, just custom built for $550 for the truck since I use it for car audio competition.
Pros: high output at idle
Cons: custom built, expensive
Vehicle:
Ford Ranger
Just sold mine to a friend... owned this one for 5 years, put 40+ thousand miles on it, and it needed nothing except for an alternator, and battery. It was a great car for me. Never let me down, drove, and sounded great...
Pros: drove and sounded great
Cons: needed alternator, battery
Vehicle:
Ford Contour
Mileage: 64373 km
Here is a stock Mk2 65 amp alternator (top) and the generic one-wire GM alternator (bottom). They're physically the same size, and the posts are almost identical in length. The GM fan is indented in the center though, and the VW one is flat. I used the GM fan, cause my stocker is disgusting, lol. I swapped the VW hardware/pulley over, since the GM pulley was obviously no good (flat, not offset).
Pros: same size, easy swap
Cons: GM pulley no good
Vehicle:
Volvo
We have an '05 ZX5. The alternator crapped out at about 45k miles. $50 part, did it myself. Otherwise, it's been flawless. 60k and counting.
Pros: flawless otherwise
Cons: alternator crapped out
Vehicle:
Ford Focus
Mileage: 72420 km
Triumph TR7. You're a bunch of amateurs. I'm a British car guy in general but the Wedge was exactly as bad as advertised. When it couldn't keep a battery charged I converted it to a GM alternator, then the radiator fell out. A previous owner had pop-riveted a license plate over a hole in the floor. Keeping the carbs synched is a black art. The seat frame snapped as I went down the road - I later found out that it had been hose-clamped together by a previous owner. It didn't catch fire as many times as my Spitfire has, but at least the Spit is fun to drive. The headlights didn't just pop up out of sync, they popped up and *turned on* on their own.
I've also owned a Hyundai Pony and it was a Toyota Cressida next to the Wedge.
Cons: radiator fell out, carbs unsynched
I had a Cougar (same underpinnings) and mine went through alternators like candy. I'm sure a better-designed aftermarket version would probably take care of it though.
Pros: better sounding V6s
Cons: alternators like candy
Vehicle:
Ford Cougar
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