First off let me give you the setup of the car.
I'm running a stock lower, 2.8" upper, idler, and stock alternator pulley. Alternator was a new ebay 200 amp alternator.
Alternator worked fine for about two weeks then a problem arose.
Problem: When engine is revved above 4800 RPM alternator drops voltage from ~13.5-14v to ~11-12v. Battery light comes on in the dash and will not go away unless I shut the engine off and start it back up. And if I repeat high RPM, I get same results - so basically I can't have any fun with my car at the moment. Now it's important to note this happens under load AND out of gear with slow rev to 4800+. This means the belt is NOT slipping (BTW, I have brand new belt and tensioner) - plus my boost gauge holds a steady 18-19psi when under load.
Alternator is under warranty but it still needs to be taken out and put back in which either costs time or money. So I want to avoid this issue going forward (this is not the first alternator giving me problems on the car - last one lasted about 1 year and completely died - it was an autozone reman special). This time I want to put something in the car that will last so I made a phone call to a heavy duty alternator shop. They told me that I'm over spinning this alternator and that I need to put a larger pulley on it. They also said I need to add in two 4 gauge copper wires, each from the + and - battery terminals directly to the alternator + and - terminals. They said this will make the system more efficient and cause less strain on the alternator. I have no problem with the cabling, I will take care of that. But my main question to the readers out there is pulley size. Do I really need to slow down this alternator with only a 2.8" upper and stock lower? If so what is the recommended alternator pulley with this configuration? Or is this just another cause of alternator failure?
Also, the alternator shop I spoke to unfortunately doesn't make a model that fits our cars. I did call another place called mechman.com. They claim to have the best alternator to cure my woes. But they want 500 bucks not including shipping for it which I think is seriously over priced. He basically told me the same thing as the other guy that I'm over spinning it but his solution was not to put a larger pulley but to purchase his 500 dollar alternator that it can accept higher RPM plus it's 6 phase. So before I drop 500+ bucks on an alternator, 1) What do you all think about the issue I'm having and do you all recommend going to a larger alternator pulley and 2) These days, who makes the best cost efficient heavy duty alternator out there?
thanks for reading my lengthy post! All help much appreciated in advance!
I'm running a stock lower, 2.8" upper, idler, and stock alternator pulley. Alternator was a new ebay 200 amp alternator.
Alternator worked fine for about two weeks then a problem arose.
Problem: When engine is revved above 4800 RPM alternator drops voltage from ~13.5-14v to ~11-12v. Battery light comes on in the dash and will not go away unless I shut the engine off and start it back up. And if I repeat high RPM, I get same results - so basically I can't have any fun with my car at the moment. Now it's important to note this happens under load AND out of gear with slow rev to 4800+. This means the belt is NOT slipping (BTW, I have brand new belt and tensioner) - plus my boost gauge holds a steady 18-19psi when under load.
Alternator is under warranty but it still needs to be taken out and put back in which either costs time or money. So I want to avoid this issue going forward (this is not the first alternator giving me problems on the car - last one lasted about 1 year and completely died - it was an autozone reman special). This time I want to put something in the car that will last so I made a phone call to a heavy duty alternator shop. They told me that I'm over spinning this alternator and that I need to put a larger pulley on it. They also said I need to add in two 4 gauge copper wires, each from the + and - battery terminals directly to the alternator + and - terminals. They said this will make the system more efficient and cause less strain on the alternator. I have no problem with the cabling, I will take care of that. But my main question to the readers out there is pulley size. Do I really need to slow down this alternator with only a 2.8" upper and stock lower? If so what is the recommended alternator pulley with this configuration? Or is this just another cause of alternator failure?
Also, the alternator shop I spoke to unfortunately doesn't make a model that fits our cars. I did call another place called mechman.com. They claim to have the best alternator to cure my woes. But they want 500 bucks not including shipping for it which I think is seriously over priced. He basically told me the same thing as the other guy that I'm over spinning it but his solution was not to put a larger pulley but to purchase his 500 dollar alternator that it can accept higher RPM plus it's 6 phase. So before I drop 500+ bucks on an alternator, 1) What do you all think about the issue I'm having and do you all recommend going to a larger alternator pulley and 2) These days, who makes the best cost efficient heavy duty alternator out there?
thanks for reading my lengthy post! All help much appreciated in advance!
