alternator upgrade?

[Strato_54]

I have a few things i am wanting to install into my 97 such as a 300 watt (RMS NOT MAX) sub and amp, led lights, 500watt or so AC inverter and maybe more but i have the stock 90 amp alternator. If i were to install all of these would that alternator be able to handle it and if not can i upgrade it? is there anything preventing me from upgrading it to a 130 amp or something bigger then stock? Im not going to go out of my way to spend money on an alternator if i dont need one but in the scenario mine goes out can i swap in something bigger instead? 

[onespiritbrain]

The Quest alternator makes 110A and I think only needs minor mounting modifications.

I had a 1500wrms system not long ago and the stock alternator handled it just fine. The battery is actually the most important thing unless your gonna be playing at competitions for hours on end.


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[Strato_54]

26 minutes ago, onespiritbrain said:

The Quest alternator makes 110A and I think only needs minor mounting modifications.

I had a 1500wrms system not long ago and the stock alternator handled it just fine. The battery is actually the most important thing unless your gonna be playing at competitions for hours on end.


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modifying mounting is no biggy if i need to ill just make some. And if i could get away with all of the above with 0 issues with the stock 90 amp then that would be amazing. As for the battery i cant remember what ive got for specs of it but i know its not a cheapo one. It is the canadian tire brand or what ever but it was their "middle tier" is what the rep at the desk told me so thats what i got. I am planning on installing a deep cycle though for the inverter  but how would you suggest i install the charging for itif you could guess? Just run a cable from my battery and hook it up to a relay so it wont drain my starter?

[Slartibartfast]

Nissan Nut did a writeup on alt upgrades. It's specific to WD21/WD22, so the mounting info won't help you, but the alts he calls out might. Also consider upgrading your charge cable at the same time. It's probably sized for the alt you have, not the alt you want. I know the charge lead on my '93 (70A alt) is pretty tiny.

 

Whether you need a bigger alt depends on how much you try and run at once. Unless you're planning to run face-melting bass and a small waffle iron at the same time, you may be alright with what you've got. I'd say install your accessories, see how the charging system handles them, and upgrade from there as needed.

 

You can use a simple relay setup to control a second battery. IIRC somebody rigged theirs to an oil pressure switch, not the key switch, so it wouldn't charge the second battery until the engine was running (so a flat second battery won't sap power from the starter motor). It's a simple system, but kind of brutal to the second battery. You can get proper charge controllers that may make the second battery last longer, but they're not cheap. Lots of research to do there if you're looking for a rabbit hole to fall into.

[Strato_54]

9 hours ago, Slartibartfast said:

Nissan Nut did a writeup on alt upgrades. It's specific to WD21/WD22, so the mounting info won't help you, but the alts he calls out might. Also consider upgrading your charge cable at the same time. It's probably sized for the alt you have, not the alt you want. I know the charge lead on my '93 (70A alt) is pretty tiny.

 

Whether you need a bigger alt depends on how much you try and run at once. Unless you're planning to run face-melting bass and a small waffle iron at the same time, you may be alright with what you've got. I'd say install your accessories, see how the charging system handles them, and upgrade from there as needed.

 

You can use a simple relay setup to control a second battery. IIRC somebody rigged theirs to an oil pressure switch, not the key switch, so it wouldn't charge the second battery until the engine was running (so a flat second battery won't sap power from the starter motor). It's a simple system, but kind of brutal to the second battery. You can get proper charge controllers that may make the second battery last longer, but they're not cheap. Lots of research to do there if you're looking for a rabbit hole to fall into.

Alright good to know. Again mounting is what ever i can jsut figure it out and make my own system if needed, but ill see where i can get with my current setup for now and hope i dont need to upgrade

[DesertKyle]

IIRC later r50's with the 3.5 have a 110 amp alternator. Think I've read about swapping these into 3.3's can't remember if it's direct swap tho.