The great alternator question...

Posted By: JS29

The great alternator question... - 09/24/08 01:15 PM

I've been read all I could find, and there are a lot of varying opinions on replacing/upgrading alternators on our old mopars. So much so, almost feel more lost than when I started.

What are the stock (amp) specs for a 70 alternator?

Would swapping out my anemic alternator with this one be worth it? All I want to do is prevent dimming lights and keep my radio powered at idle while stopped in Drive. BTW, aside from an aftermarket CD-Radio, I am not running any other non-stock electrical items (no electric fuel pump, no electrical fans, no amps, etc...)
If I did swap out with the 50amp linked above, would I need to do any rewiring as recommended with other high-amp upgrades?

Thanks

Posted By: AndyF

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/24/08 02:19 PM

I developed the Denso swap to solve those problems. The stock Mopar alternators are very lazy at low speeds. The Denso alternator solves all the problems and it bolts on with very easy wiring mods. I switched my car over a long time ago and would never go back to a Mopar alternator.

Posted By: NachoRT74

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/24/08 05:34 PM

lates 70s, eartliers 80s stock mopar alts gives good power...
and you have also upgrade kits option:
http://store.alternatorparts.com/daimlerchrysler.aspx

Posted By: denfireguy

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/24/08 05:53 PM

Quote:

I've been read all I could find, and there are a lot of varying opinions on replacing/upgrading alternators on our old mopars. So much so, almost feel more lost than when I started.

What are the stock (amp) specs for a 70 alternator?

Would swapping out my anemic alternator with this one be worth it? All I want to do is prevent dimming lights and keep my radio powered at idle while stopped in Drive. BTW, aside from an aftermarket CD-Radio, I am not running any other non-stock electrical items (no electric fuel pump, no electrical fans, no amps, etc...)
If I did swap out with the 50amp linked above, would I need to do any rewiring as recommended with other high-amp upgrades?

Thanks

To answer your question, there should be no trouble in just swapping the alternators out. Your current draw is not much different than your original Mopar. You may have doubled your radio current draw but that would going from 2 amps to 4 amps. No big deal.
Craig

Posted By: ahy

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/25/08 01:42 AM

There are lots of upgrades... for the wiring I think its a good idea to avoid sending charging current through the bulkhead connector. Even with the stock alternator its a point of failure. A simple wire, 10 guage or heavier, from the alternator output to the starter relay with a length of fusible link included will take care of the problem. Then you can upgrade to a later model higher output Chrysler or Denso alternator with confidence. You will need to add a voltmeter to track charging system performance as the original ammeter won't work. My

Posted By: JS29

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/25/08 02:35 PM

Quote:

A simple wire, 10 guage or heavier, from the alternator output to the starter relay with a length of fusible link included will take care of the problem.

Being a complete auto electrical novice, are there varying "levels" for fusible links? If so, what would be a good one to get for a 60amp alternator upgrade?

Posted By: NachoRT74

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/25/08 02:42 PM

http://www.allpar.com/history/mopar/electrical.html

there is a info table there about that

and as Usually, I allways will post MY link about some good upgrades

some upgrades on charging system, on a Mopar way

and a nice informative discussion about everything related here:

https://board.moparts.org/ubbthreads/showthreaded.php?Cat=0&Number=4646894&page=0

the link I posted about the upgrade is there too

Posted By: SomeCarGuy

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/25/08 04:02 PM

Even if you don't do away with the bulkhead pass through, you can improve things A LOT by just simply taking the lug off one stud on the AMP gauge and hooking it to the other side. That will cut the gauge out and make for a nice and neat wiring solution at the same time.

Posted By: MarkZ

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/25/08 06:30 PM

Quote:

I developed the Denso swap to solve those problems. The stock Mopar alternators are very lazy at low speeds. The Denso alternator solves all the problems and it bolts on with very easy wiring mods. I switched my car over a long time ago and would never go back to a Mopar alternator.

Mopar alternators have VERY lazy idle charging characteristics. I recently had this problem with my 5A. Power windows, seats, door locks, and a mild stereo only compounded the problem. Stepping up from the stock 60 amp to a 73 amp round-back made little to no difference.

I picked up the 60 amp Denso kit from Mancini's and remedied the issues. Charges like a new vehicle.

Posted By: Lefty

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/25/08 08:37 PM

Quote:

I developed the Denso swap to solve those problems. The stock Mopar alternators are very lazy at low speeds. The Denso alternator solves all the problems and it bolts on with very easy wiring mods. I switched my car over a long time ago and would never go back to a Mopar alternator.

I can vouch for that. I have Andy's 120 amp denso kit on the 440 in my 66 Coronet and the voltage is rock steady.

It also sits lower which cleans up the engine compartment a bit.

Posted By: kick_the_reverb

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/25/08 10:11 PM

Another vote for the Denso, I use a 120 amp one on my small block, and it works great (after I made sure I had the right bottom pulley size, per AndyF's advice).
Ran

Posted By: ahy

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/26/08 01:15 AM

Quote:

Quote:

A simple wire, 10 guage or heavier, from the alternator output to the starter relay with a length of fusible link included will take care of the problem.

Being a complete auto electrical novice, are there varying "levels" for fusible links? If so, what would be a good one to get for a 60amp alternator upgrade?

The guideline for fusible links is to go 2 sizes smaller than the main wire. So 10 guage main wire would take a 14 guage fusible link. Autozone and NAPA usually stock the fusible link. The 10 guage wire should be fine for an upgraded stock alternator up to 75 amps or a small Denso. Bigger than that and the main wire should be heavier - 6 or 8 guage. NAPA stocks the heavier wires.

Posted By: FurryStump

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 01:36 PM

I went with the 60 amp internally regulated, it was easy. Eddy heads made mine a little tight, but I was able to modify an old adjustment bracket, and make some sleeve spacers. I also have not much more that a stock electrical load. I also routed the main power feed seperate from the bulkhead connector,and wired in two relays into the head light harness to stop the main power from running through my ing. switch and dimmer switch. Very happy, NO dimming lights, I didn't change my fusible link because my alt is only the 60 amp version.

Posted By: 383man

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 02:35 PM

It's a good idea to upgrade the alt to a newer style that will charge more at idle. It really don't matter if you put a 300 amp alt on as it will only put out what the car needs and then the volt regulation will cut it back once the battery volts is in the 13.0 to 15.0 range. Ron

Posted By: DaytonaTurbo

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 03:59 PM

JS29, I am in the same situation as you, no non-stock items other than a CD player. I put in a 60 amp alternator out of a 75 Dart SE slant 6 and it charges fine. At idle I don't even notice my lights dimming. I do drive the car at night lots, but always in town where there's so much ambient lighting you don't even need headlights really, so I don't even notice the lights dimming, and I idle at 600rpm in gear. They probably do dim, I just don't notice it. Then again I run stock headlights, which weren't the brightest at the best of time, but again, street lamps throw so much light that the only use headlights have to me is to alert other drivers of my car's location. Has no problem running the CD player though, that never skips a beat. Yes there are some great alternator conversions out there, but if you really don't need all that power, why go through the trouble? 60 amp alt does me just fine, the rest just adds to the charm of these old cars.

Posted By: Pool Fixer

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 04:52 PM

I've had my denso on my big block for over 6 years. it's a 130amp out of an 02 ram van. bolted to stock big block brackets and I added a 4g wire from alt to pos stud on starter relay. I also cleaned the bulkhead connector real good and bypassed the amp gauge. best money I have ever spent on the car.

you can get cheap denso's on ebay all day long

Attached picture 4713844-altswap1a.jpg

Posted By: thecarfarmer

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 05:17 PM

How 'bout some semi-hijacking...

I've got a couple of these alternators, one of which has a multi-rib belt. I'm interested in changing my 383 over to multi-rib when I get around to going reverse-cool w/ an SBC pump.

What years of 3.9/5.2/5.9 should I look for to steal a crank pulley?

-bill

Posted By: Scamp408

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 08:18 PM

Any pics on a 69 and earlier small block?

Posted By: codfish

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 08:28 PM

Quote:

I've had my denso on my big block for over 6 years. it's a 130amp out of an 02 ram van. bolted to stock big block brackets and I added a 4g wire from alt to pos stud on starter relay. I also cleaned the bulkhead connector real good and bypassed the amp gauge. best money I have ever spent on the car.

you can get cheap denso's on ebay all day long

OK.

So you ran a new wire from the alt to the starter relay.

Did you leave the original wire hooked up as original? Or does it have to be removed for this upgrade to be effective?

And does anyone know if the Denso, or later chrysler alternator will work with my new , March brackets on my 440?

thanks
codfish

Posted By: cogen80

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 08:57 PM

Quote:

Another vote for the Denso, I use a 120 amp one on my small block, and it works great (after I made sure I had the right bottom pulley size, per AndyF's advice).
Ran

have any pics of the sm blk install?

Posted By: Pool Fixer

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/27/08 11:12 PM

Quote:

Quote:

I've had my denso on my big block for over 6 years. it's a 130amp out of an 02 ram van. bolted to stock big block brackets and I added a 4g wire from alt to pos stud on starter relay. I also cleaned the bulkhead connector real good and bypassed the amp gauge. best money I have ever spent on the car.

you can get cheap denso's on ebay all day long

OK.

So you ran a new wire from the alt to the starter relay.

Did you leave the original wire hooked up as original? Or does it have to be removed for this upgrade to be effective?

And does anyone know if the Denso, or later chrysler alternator will work with my new , March brackets on my 440?

thanks
codfish

i left all other stock wiring in place. I did have to add another wire for the field hookups. I went from single field reg to dual field.

Posted By: 451Mopar

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/28/08 12:44 AM

Quote:

I developed the Denso swap to solve those problems. The stock Mopar alternators are very lazy at low speeds. The Denso alternator solves all the problems and it bolts on with very easy wiring mods. I switched my car over a long time ago and would never go back to a Mopar alternator.

Andy, Do you have any brackets to low mount the alternator to clear an electric water pump?
I have a Denso 130 Amp external reg alternator from a newer truck, and I am going to run electric water pump, electric fuel pump, and cooling fans. Wiring is not a problem, put my EE degree to work, just looking for brackets so I don't have to fab them myself?

Posted By: ahy

Re: The great alternator question... - 09/28/08 12:43 PM

Quote:

Quote:

I've had my denso on my big block for over 6 years. it's a 130amp out of an 02 ram van. bolted to stock big block brackets and I added a 4g wire from alt to pos stud on starter relay. I also cleaned the bulkhead connector real good and bypassed the amp gauge. best money I have ever spent on the car.

you can get cheap denso's on ebay all day long

OK.

So you ran a new wire from the alt to the starter relay.

Did you leave the original wire hooked up as original? Or does it have to be removed for this upgrade to be effective?

And does anyone know if the Denso, or later chrysler alternator will work with my new , March brackets on my 440?

thanks
codfish

When you run a wire from the alternator to starter relay OE wiring needs to stay in place to feed power to the switches ect. in the pass compartment. The later model higher output OE "square back" alternators will fit older model brackets. The Big Denso can fit with stock brackets but its real close to or hits the head unless you get the new brackets designed by Andy F (Mancini sells them). I believe the small Denso needs different brackets designed by Andy F (Mancini).

It doesn't sound like your application needs a jumbo alternator - A late model high output "squareback" ('78 Diplomat parts store replacement rated 78 amps), a Powermaster squareback (75-80 amps) or the small Denso would fill the bill. The Denso would have the best low RPM performance and may be more durable. It also costs more and requires bracket modifications.