The FNG Posted August 26, 2011 Share Posted August 26, 2011 Has anyone had experience swapping alternators on their EA82 cars? I know of a GM swap and a Nissan Maxima swap. The way it sounds, the Nissan alt. is easier to swap in, but is not as powerful as the GM. It may only be a 5 amp difference, so I don't think it will be all that noticeable. I do live in a rural area, so the GM alt would be easier to find, but I'm not sure I have the tools to fab any brackets. Please share your experience or thoughts. I have read some threads on these, but I just wanted some personal opinions on the matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eulogious Posted August 26, 2011 Share Posted August 26, 2011 Do the maxima alt swap. Well worth the little bit of effort needed. The GM swap is good, but you can't fabricate something, then the maxima alt is the way to go. Talk to GD about getting an alt. I got mine from him and he sent it up to me with the pulley and all, so I just had to drop it in. It was really easy, and the improvement is awesome. No more dimming of the headlights with the fan turned up, or the stereo turned up, that sort of thing. Totally worth it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ferox Posted August 27, 2011 Share Posted August 27, 2011 I do live in a rural area, so the GM alt would be easier to find, but I'm not sure I have the tools to fab any brackets. The fab work on the GM swap is super easy if you have a little welder (which it sounds like you don't). You just have to reduce the width of the main bracket a little bit. You can probably do it without welding, but I have a welder so I have never done it that way. The one-inch spacer on the adjustment bracket is just a piece of angle iron with two holes drilled in it. Once it is done the alt bolts in straight out of the box and has the correct pulley already. I have done this on two cars and they work great and are readily available in several amperages with the same case size. The Maxima swap is great too, and is easier for most people. Just keep the correct size allen wrench and an adjustable or correct closed-end wrench in your on-board tool kit in case the alt goes out while you are away from home and need to swap the pulley on to the replacement. Most auto parts stores can probably help you do that too, or you can just buy the tools there. You will be very pleased with either option. If you buy a new (reman) alt. I recommend getting one at Autozone and save your receipt. I am not really a fan of Autozone, but with their limited lifetime warranty you can bring it back for a new one in perpetuity...meaning you essentially pay once and get as many trade-ins as needed as long as you keep track of your receipt. I also recommend up-sizing your wiring. The power supply wire to the battery and the field sensor wire should be a little larger. For the most part the stock wiring will handle the load, but if you run your battery down or have lots of electrical accessories and the alt. starts charging hard, it could cause some excessive heat. I don't think most people that do the swap do anything to their wiring, and I haven't heard of cars burning up after the swap so it's not mandatory, just recommended. The fusible links should melt before anything else. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Dude Abides Posted August 27, 2011 Share Posted August 27, 2011 I would recomend the maxima swap. I know the GM one is a good one but lots of fab work. If your worried about the maxima alternator, throw the old ea82 one in the back compartment and if it ever leaves you stranded then youve got an alt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The FNG Posted August 28, 2011 Author Share Posted August 28, 2011 I would recomend the maxima swap. I know the GM one is a good one but lots of fab work. If your worried about the maxima alternator, throw the old ea82 one in the back compartment and if it ever leaves you stranded then youve got an alt. Nice. I like the thinking. With the 90amp alt, how much load can it handle? I assume whatever I throw at it (2 sets of hellas, brights, and sony deck) without an issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tractor pole Posted August 28, 2011 Share Posted August 28, 2011 Nice. I like the thinking. With the 90amp alt, how much load can it handle? I assume whatever I throw at it (2 sets of hellas, brights, and sony deck) without an issue. I am assuming that you are talking 4 100w, 2 65w and a deck without amp? you will be around 40 amps of draw on the system so you have about 50 to play with, and a stock EA82 alternator is a 55 amp so I think you should be good. I am doing this swap soon and I am also doing a DL headlight swap with 80/100 Hi/Lo H4 and a 100w H1 high beam so I will be close to the same load as you. Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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