AKghandi Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 87gl-10 wagon ea82t ptd/r well im done with my car not charging at idle with the heater on. i start car, runs for 10 mins then shuts off. 30 mins later i come outside expecting a nice warm car instead i get a dead battery. so! i have seen many threads about alternator swaps and since i have a pretty big stereo im going to go with either the maxima or the gm swap. and what i wanna know is which one is the best bang for my buck? or should i go with an ej alt.? here in alaska we dont have many junkyards. so anything i buy will be new/reman from napa or schucks. i have basic tools but im always looking for an excuse to buy more. i think im going to need a grinder no matter what. the wiring doesnt really concern me. but the pulley and how it mounts does. so what i need is some brains to pick, anyone whos done this swap would be good. because im going to need the years and what engine the gm alt. comes from. looks like 2.8 or maybe iron duke. because i will have only a day or so to mess with it. i work full time as a pizza delivery driver. if i had more time i wouldnt even post this but since i drive the car every day i thought id make a list first. and try to do it all at once. links to old threads very welcome! because honestly i have not even the slightest clue on how to go about even searching for those Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6 Star Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stubies Subie Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 hahaha, that's the best answer I've ever seen!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKghandi Posted January 1, 2012 Author Share Posted January 1, 2012 ok. you got me.. but that still doesn't answer any of my other questions.. lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
6 Star Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 This is a good thread. Its the maxima alt upgrade. http://www.ultimatesubaru.org/forum/showthread.php?t=100559 I'm sure there are others if you search "alternator upgrade". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted January 1, 2012 Share Posted January 1, 2012 in some situations having two alternators is a good option. keep one in the trunk, jack compartment or somewhere else on hand just in case. buying two used alternators - preferrably factory OEM units with low-ish miles anyway. i'm nearing 200,000 miles on two of my daily drivers but only one new Subaru alternator i got a great deal on. not entirely stoked about having an aftermarket unit on there since i plan on another 200,000 miles out of these cars. so - i'm going to install the new one in one of them and then put that old one, which still works fine, in the spare tire compartment of the other vehicle. guess that sounds strange, depends on your goals and usage and how much you desire reliability or trust aftermarket stuff. i don't have enough experience with it but have seen enough failures with limited experience to deter me on my vehicles i travel long distances with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AKghandi Posted January 2, 2012 Author Share Posted January 2, 2012 well its my daily driver for now but as soon as the temp gets above 32f its coming off the road for body work lift etc etc..right now however, i need it to charge at idle with the heater on full blast. maybe even with the head lights and the stereo on.. too many times have i been at the door talking to a customer and my car just dies in their drive way. so no more of that. im going to do the maxima upgrade and hopefully im going to find the correct 11mm spacer at fastenal. my other wagon has the correct 2 belt pulley on it so im not worried about that.. and! i checked schucks and the maxima one and the oem one are the same price give or take a few cents. and since my plans include alot of electronics im going to need it. my wagon has 243k miles on it... and the alt thats on it right now appears to be new. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeneralDisorder Posted January 2, 2012 Share Posted January 2, 2012 You need the spacer behind to pulley to be 9mm so just the top edge of the Maxima shaft below the threads is exposed (in order to center the pulley - the threads are too small to properly locate the pulley to center). I just chuck them up in my lathe and turn then down till I hit 9mm with a caliper. Doesn't have to be super accurate (dealing with v-belts here - kind of the drive system equivelent of the boad side of a barn ) but it's nice if the spacer is evenly ground/cut to 9mm or else the pulley will wobble when it's running. Doesn't look real professional that way so when I build them for folks I'm largely paying attention to the thickness being even around the entire circumference more than I am about the actual measurement - anything between about 8.75 and 9.25mm is fine. GD Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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