Hey what's up gang?
I got a pitch to shift into here. I have a failing Alternator in my 1990 Chevy Lumina Iron Duke. 105amp Model AC DELCO (three years old) was replaced because of the first one failing.
So I have a decision to make. Should I replace the Alternator with a highquality 100-150amp alt and replace the battery with Costco Kirkland 850CCA battery. I know these cars have a reputation for their altrenators going out from lack of good parts.
The first alt went out in the car without any stereo system. The second alt had a 375w RMS RF monoblock which may have been the cause of it's failure. I would like to replace it with a high quality alt sense the old ones have proven them selves that they will go out. I would be interested in a 600W RMS stereo system in the future. It would be nice not to have any electrical problems.
Any comments or suggestions on what to look for in alternator, maybe some links, and if you can give any advise to make my install go easier I'd love to hear from you.
thanks for helping me with you're time.
have a wounderful day.
Replies (6)
uochronos on 12/13/2004 18:14:49
i got mine off ebay for 230$ shipped 200amp alternator with a life time warranty...
also after only 3 years ui would check and see if your current alternator has a warranty... chances are it does most have somewhere between a 2-5 year warratny at least most i have seen.
swez on 12/14/2004 03:57:45
Depending on the engine package you have, may be able to use the Old's 120A ALT. I had a 1990 Old's Trofeo' and sold it for a more reliable Buick. Both are 3800 series engines and I just swapped the 105A Buick ALT with the newer 120A Olds ALT. Had to "re-clock" the ALT's to fit properly, but that was easy too.
The 120A is basically the same unit, with a slightly larger casing and a beefier regulator system. This is a lousy design from our friends at GM engineering. I think I have replaced 3-4 ALT's in the past 4 years on this CS series ALT. Fortunately, I did get a lifetime warranty on the ALT. The last one died on me last winter while in Florida. Just took out the Old's unit, sent it back when the new one came in and "re-clocked"
it. Has been fine in the Buick ever since.
Am I making sense here?
Swez
PS Bottom line, the CS class ALT's are notorious for early failures. If you do replace it with a GM rebuild, get a lifetime warrantee.
Munchiesyumm on 12/15/2004 00:02:41
I did check the warentee status. Apprently the company who installed it only has a 12month warenty because they know what they were selling when the charged $486 dollars. A real rip off for the last owner of the car. It's obvious they didn't fix the real problem anyways if it has proven to be defected somewhere.
So the 120AMP model from a buick will fit on there? I wounder what the pricing on this model is.. I'll do some research and post my results let you guys know how it goes. I will be installing the alternator my self so as far as making it fit do you have any comment on how this is done?
To clarify the engine this is the four cylinder 2.5ltr Iron Duke motor. Very similar to the Fiero models and the older Pontiac Grand Am's.
thanks guys for helping me get this issue solved.
swez on 12/15/2004 04:47:04
The ALT mentioned is now in my Buick, but it came out of an Olds Trofeo'. Same engine, same ALT casing. I paid $185.00 for this one and it lasted 2 years +.
When it failed, I did not have my papers on it. (back in MI) But fortunately, I remembered the name of the place I bought the 120A ALT and called them up. They had me on file, shipped a new ALT in 2 days. Took 20 mins to re-clock and install the new one and sent the dead one back. So far, so good... 11 mos have gone by w/o problems.
If you are going to install a modest-potent audio system here, might be a good idea to take the route Chronos mentioned. $230 for a 200A ALT and LT warrantee, seems like a pretty good bargain here. Especially if you plan to keep the car a few more years.
Swez
PS I did learn that Buick does have a 140A model for cars w/ heated windshields. It has a different mounting system than the models that don't have heaters... but with some sharp fabrication, that might be an option. I don't recall the prices though.
FYI: Here, I can get a rebuilt 105/108A GM ALT for about $75.00 from Auto Zone. That was ~ 1 year ago. Your model may be a bit unique, but shop around.
Swez
gearhead on 12/15/2004 17:54:19
One thing to think about. Fit the largest (physical size) alternator you can. Many high amp, hopped-up stock frame alternators that are physically small, don't generally tend to last very long. They don't dissapate heat as efficiently as a physically larger alternator. A large frame 140 amp alt will usually last a lot longer than a small frame 140 amp alt, component quality being equal. You might want to look at this site, especially if you're a DIY'er.
http://www.alternatorparts.com/
swez on 12/15/2004 21:03:23
I did forget to mention this, but gearhead sparked my thinking. The 120A ALT did have a wider casing than the 105A version. (maybe 1.5" deeper) It was a very tight fit, installing the 120A version into the Buick.
When I swapped the two, the 105A dropped into the Olds with ease. In short, there is a difference in casing depth, but after re-clocking, the mounting holes and electrical lines mated just fine.
Swez
I got a pitch to shift into here. I have a failing Alternator in my 1990 Chevy Lumina Iron Duke. 105amp Model AC DELCO (three years old) was replaced because of the first one failing.
So I have a decision to make. Should I replace the Alternator with a highquality 100-150amp alt and replace the battery with Costco Kirkland 850CCA battery. I know these cars have a reputation for their altrenators going out from lack of good parts.
The first alt went out in the car without any stereo system. The second alt had a 375w RMS RF monoblock which may have been the cause of it's failure. I would like to replace it with a high quality alt sense the old ones have proven them selves that they will go out. I would be interested in a 600W RMS stereo system in the future. It would be nice not to have any electrical problems.
Any comments or suggestions on what to look for in alternator, maybe some links, and if you can give any advise to make my install go easier I'd love to hear from you.
thanks for helping me with you're time.
have a wounderful day.
Replies (6)
uochronos on 12/13/2004 18:14:49
i got mine off ebay for 230$ shipped 200amp alternator with a life time warranty...
also after only 3 years ui would check and see if your current alternator has a warranty... chances are it does most have somewhere between a 2-5 year warratny at least most i have seen.
swez on 12/14/2004 03:57:45
Depending on the engine package you have, may be able to use the Old's 120A ALT. I had a 1990 Old's Trofeo' and sold it for a more reliable Buick. Both are 3800 series engines and I just swapped the 105A Buick ALT with the newer 120A Olds ALT. Had to "re-clock" the ALT's to fit properly, but that was easy too.
The 120A is basically the same unit, with a slightly larger casing and a beefier regulator system. This is a lousy design from our friends at GM engineering. I think I have replaced 3-4 ALT's in the past 4 years on this CS series ALT. Fortunately, I did get a lifetime warranty on the ALT. The last one died on me last winter while in Florida. Just took out the Old's unit, sent it back when the new one came in and "re-clocked"
it. Has been fine in the Buick ever since.
Am I making sense here?
Swez
PS Bottom line, the CS class ALT's are notorious for early failures. If you do replace it with a GM rebuild, get a lifetime warrantee.
Munchiesyumm on 12/15/2004 00:02:41
I did check the warentee status. Apprently the company who installed it only has a 12month warenty because they know what they were selling when the charged $486 dollars. A real rip off for the last owner of the car. It's obvious they didn't fix the real problem anyways if it has proven to be defected somewhere.
So the 120AMP model from a buick will fit on there? I wounder what the pricing on this model is.. I'll do some research and post my results let you guys know how it goes. I will be installing the alternator my self so as far as making it fit do you have any comment on how this is done?
To clarify the engine this is the four cylinder 2.5ltr Iron Duke motor. Very similar to the Fiero models and the older Pontiac Grand Am's.
thanks guys for helping me get this issue solved.
swez on 12/15/2004 04:47:04
The ALT mentioned is now in my Buick, but it came out of an Olds Trofeo'. Same engine, same ALT casing. I paid $185.00 for this one and it lasted 2 years +.
When it failed, I did not have my papers on it. (back in MI) But fortunately, I remembered the name of the place I bought the 120A ALT and called them up. They had me on file, shipped a new ALT in 2 days. Took 20 mins to re-clock and install the new one and sent the dead one back. So far, so good... 11 mos have gone by w/o problems.
If you are going to install a modest-potent audio system here, might be a good idea to take the route Chronos mentioned. $230 for a 200A ALT and LT warrantee, seems like a pretty good bargain here. Especially if you plan to keep the car a few more years.
Swez
PS I did learn that Buick does have a 140A model for cars w/ heated windshields. It has a different mounting system than the models that don't have heaters... but with some sharp fabrication, that might be an option. I don't recall the prices though.
FYI: Here, I can get a rebuilt 105/108A GM ALT for about $75.00 from Auto Zone. That was ~ 1 year ago. Your model may be a bit unique, but shop around.
Swez
gearhead on 12/15/2004 17:54:19
One thing to think about. Fit the largest (physical size) alternator you can. Many high amp, hopped-up stock frame alternators that are physically small, don't generally tend to last very long. They don't dissapate heat as efficiently as a physically larger alternator. A large frame 140 amp alt will usually last a lot longer than a small frame 140 amp alt, component quality being equal. You might want to look at this site, especially if you're a DIY'er.
http://www.alternatorparts.com/
swez on 12/15/2004 21:03:23
I did forget to mention this, but gearhead sparked my thinking. The 120A ALT did have a wider casing than the 105A version. (maybe 1.5" deeper) It was a very tight fit, installing the 120A version into the Buick.
When I swapped the two, the 105A dropped into the Olds with ease. In short, there is a difference in casing depth, but after re-clocking, the mounting holes and electrical lines mated just fine.
Swez
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