I was thinking of upgrading my alternator to a 160 or 180 amp. seems the 130amp alt dont last. any ideas of where to get a good one without having to remorgage my home? was also curious about the exsisting wiring will it handle 160 or 180 amp?
__________________
97 Mustang
metallic forest green 6 speed, bbk cold air. 42 lbs injectors, bbk headers o/r x pipe, flowmaster super 44s, cobra brakes, 17X9 rims, comp cam.
A good alternater - regardless of amperage rating - should lst a long time. If they don't there's a problem. You need to figure out what the problem is befor replacing it. Otherwise, you'll destroy that one , too.
you're right bob. this alternator is a good one. i rebuild alternators for a living--one of my company's customers is NAPA.
how many alt's have you gone through and what has been the reason for replacement? perhaps i can help troubleshoot.
__________________
1998 GT black
Flowmasters on Pypes Off-Road X-pipe
Steeda Double Hook Clutch Quadrant, Firewall Adjuster and Adjustable Cable, King Cobra Clutch
Eibach Pro-kit, Mach 1 tokicos
Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter, BBK UCA's & LCA's, All polyurethane bushings and isolaters
"I don't know which is louder...my exhaust or my stereo..."
this is what i know for sure. i pretty much listen to my radio all the time (factory 460) always have the heat or a/c on. in the winter the rear defroster. with all this it puts a strain on the system. when im running my heater and the cars at idle and the engine fan comes on. its obviously gonna draw alot. the volt meter is no longer in straight up like it was 10 years ago. but its well within the normal range. dips down between the n and o when the blower is running and the engine fan kicks on. holds a 12.7 in the battery. running its anywhere from 14.7 after its first started to 13.4 which is normal. problem is after about 6 8 months the alt starts to squeal and cherp. which we all know is a sign of it going bad. its possible i got 2 shitty replacments in the past. but the 3rd now its getting outragous. the serp belt is new. tentioner is fine. had 1 low cell in my battery about 1/8 to 1/4" low. so im thinking to aviod my alt early death. im gonna get a 160 or 180 amp alt and new battery.
__________________
97 Mustang
metallic forest green 6 speed, bbk cold air. 42 lbs injectors, bbk headers o/r x pipe, flowmaster super 44s, cobra brakes, 17X9 rims, comp cam.
The failure does not seem to be related to current draw issues, sounds like bearing failure. Did you buy the same brand each time? I have had more than one non oem aftermarket autopart store alternator fail within one year all due to premature bearing failure. Stock alts can easily provide sufficient power to ALL your accesories at once with no problems. Bad bearings squeal and chirp and if your tensioner is working properly I would assume the manufacturer of those alts uses cheap bearings or is remanufacturing them incorrectly. Try ebay if your looking for good prices. You may want to go oem or a known performance brand.
yeah my original finally when out in i think late 05. got a replacment 3 months later the harness in the back of the alt melted. got a replacement free for that one. it started to sqeaul and the back wire post was loose. the 3 which is the one i thats squealing now. the wires are good but you can hear a cherp in it sometimes. so its possible all 3 came from the same place. im just gonna get a 160 amp and get a wire harmess and see what that does.
__________________
97 Mustang
metallic forest green 6 speed, bbk cold air. 42 lbs injectors, bbk headers o/r x pipe, flowmaster super 44s, cobra brakes, 17X9 rims, comp cam.
if you upgrade to a higher amp unit you have to upgrade the wire harness as well. The chirping is probably the drive end bearing going bad which happens. check the tension on the pulley and serpentine belt. it might be a skosh too tight if you have had multiple bearing failures. typically its not the bearing that goes bad in these alternators.
At idle, (approx. 2000 rpm on the alternator) your alternator is putting out roughly 75amps. This is plenty to handle the draw of your required components. If you had a subwoofer system or nav or tvs i could see more amp requirements. Id replace the battery first to see if that helps your volt meter issues. You can always find an auto electric shop to replace just the bearing in the alternator.
__________________
1998 GT black
Flowmasters on Pypes Off-Road X-pipe
Steeda Double Hook Clutch Quadrant, Firewall Adjuster and Adjustable Cable, King Cobra Clutch
Eibach Pro-kit, Mach 1 tokicos
Steeda Tri-Ax Shifter, BBK UCA's & LCA's, All polyurethane bushings and isolaters
"I don't know which is louder...my exhaust or my stereo..."
the more i think about it i think its the rad fan. i can run my car heater on radio on lights on. and be good. i let the car sit running with nothing on and the rad fan draws the power down.
__________________
97 Mustang
metallic forest green 6 speed, bbk cold air. 42 lbs injectors, bbk headers o/r x pipe, flowmaster super 44s, cobra brakes, 17X9 rims, comp cam.
high amp alt concerns 
