The alternator itself can get bad only if the bearings are shot. If you don't have play on the shaft, and it spins freely then the alternating part of the alternator is fine. What can get pretty bad are the diode rectifier bridge.
If you have the V6 4.3 it's one of the more dependable motors GM ever made. The factory alt is rated at 105 amps. Should be enough for your needs.
My 2005 Altima used to eat alternators. The first and second replacement were rebuilds or aftermarket, I don't remember the order. I finally paid for an OEM and that one lasted until I sold the vehicle a few years later. This is one of those parts that is better to stick with OEM replacements.
Nissan offered me around the same price for my 370z alternator replacement. I went to eBay and bout a used oem alternator from a rear ended total z with 3k miles on it for 80 bucks and changed it myself
I replaced mine with a Nissan Quest alternator works pretty well and is cheaper with a higher current output there is a write up in the forums for it
I purchased a 2002 Nissan Quest alternator for my 2002 Xterra. It bolts right up. 120 amps instead of 80 amps.
I went and purchased an OEM alternator from Nissan and it is still not providing power. I have triple checked all the connections on the alternator, and have verified they are running 12V when the engine is shut off.
Had an appetite for alternators, as they put it behind the rear cylinder head and tried to keep it cool with some little rubber/plastic air duct. Failboat. We sold the car with its third alternator, each failure attributed to failure of the rear bearings.
Oh yeah and it went through 2 maybe 3 alternators in the 13 years we had it lol.
My mom had a 93 Lumina Euro sedan with the 3.8. The only real serious issue it had was a failed alternator which drained the battery and almost left me stranded one night because the headlights dimmed to the point of being unusable. Other than that, yes the alignment was poor and it had some bad brake wear and warping of the rotors.
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