I did one on my Wife's 2011 Nissan Quest with the same engine as the Pathfinder.
Original one lasted around 130k miles, so can't really complain.
The one on the Quest wasn't great, but I think I got it done in about 4-5 hours.
Had to pull the lower bumper splash shield, and the passenger fender liner.
Then I unbolted the ac compressor and let it drop down (was able to leave all the refrigerant hoses connected so that was a plus).
The upper bolt was a pain to get to, probably the worst part of the job!
With it unbolted there was just barely room to get it out through the wheel well. If you had it positioned just right it would slip through the opening between the subframe and the frame rail.
Nissan use to be good
The alternator quit on my 2020 Nissan Sentra, and there were NO aftermarket options for it. The dealership wanted $900, JUST for the alternator, so I can actually believe their price.
Had one do this on me and it was the alternator.
I will always vote for a 10SI or 12SI GM alternator swap on an L-series engine. Affordable conversion bracket. 1-wire GM alternators are simple, reliable, cheap and readily available online but not easy to find in parts stores. 3 wire GM alternators are are easy enough to wire up and are absolutely everywhere in parts stores if you’re more concerned about parts availability and potential breakdowns on long adventures.
My shitbox, I replaced my alternator just for my window motor to go bad, I replaced the window motor just for the thermostat to go bad the next day, it’s inevitable.
And assuming that the alternator is the issue, hope you get an oem good part or a used one, on nissan altimas/maxima Remans are bad.
I've gone through 3 Nissan Value Advantage Alternators (through the Infiniti dealership - warranty) for my Q. All Infiniti offers for my year (2015) are Remanufactured Alternators. I'm tired of Remans.
I bought a remanufactured alternator from Autozone and it did not work. I then bought an amazon alternator. It went out 2 weeks later. I then bought the OEM Nissan alternator. I've not had a problem since (6 months)
November of 2023 I had to replace the alternator. I purchased an aftermarket and had a mechanic friend install it for me. 6 weeks later it started acting up again and left me stranded. The battery tested good, alternator was bad. I returned the alternator and was warranted a second one. Roughly 2 months later, the battery light comes on while I am out of town. I pulled into a local parts store and had it tested. Battery tested fine. Alternator tested bad. The Nissan dealership says it is the alternator. But since I had not used a factory alternator that was the problem. Apparently the aftermarket alternators can not handle the load and are not set up properly.
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If choosing alternator across many manufacturers, check the part ranking. If your choice is down to two brands, the PartReview part comparisons help.
We compare alternator across these categories:
In March 2026 on PartReview, alternator OEM Nissan were overall better than GENERAL MOTORS.
In March 2026 on PartReview, alternator OEM Nissan were overall more popular than GENERAL MOTORS.
By vote balance, alternator OEM Nissan surpassed GENERAL MOTORS:
By number of reviews, alternator OEM Nissan surpassed GENERAL MOTORS:
In March 2026, according to PartReview, alternator OEM Nissan led more car-specific ratings than GENERAL MOTORS:
OEM Nissan are chosen by owners of cars such as: Nissan Maxima, and others.
Alternator GENERAL MOTORS have not yet taken leading positions in car-specific ratings. You can help by adding a review and specifying your car.
If this comparison didn’t fully answer your question, there are many others on PartReview.
For example, comparisons of alternator OEM Nissan with: Denso, Bosch, Duralast, OEM Toyota, VALEO, OEM Honda, OEM Volkswagen, AC DELCO, OEM FORD, OEM Audi.
Also available: comparisons of alternator GENERAL MOTORS with: Denso, Bosch, Duralast, OEM Toyota, VALEO, OEM Honda, OEM Volkswagen, AC DELCO, OEM FORD, OEM Audi.
You can also see who is better among other alternator manufacturers: Bosch or Denso, Denso or Duralast, OEM Toyota or Denso, Bosch or Duralast, Denso or VALEO.
