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Rugged Rocks Alternator


MiltonWATech99
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Hello everyone. I haven’t posted on this forum in quite some time as I’ve resorted to the WD21 Facebook group for a while.

 

Im wondering if anyone on here has any experience with the Rugged Rocks high output alternator for the WD21. I’m looking into getting one if another stimulus check drops. It’s quite pricey at $470 but features 130 amps of output current at idle with a max voltage of 14.8 volts and max current of 180-200 amps. I will upgrade all my wiring to 2/0 AWG and install a 200 amp ANL fuse on the charging wire.

 

Would I be the first to install one of these? This or the Mean Green Alternator? Opinions welcome!

 

https://ruggedrocksoffroad.com/nissan-pathfinder-high-output-alternator-by-rugged-rocks-1990-1995-30l-v6-180-amp-p-60702.html

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The later Quest alternators are good for 145A, and Nissan Nut did a writeup on how to swap them into a WD21. Looks like they take a little screwing around to get mounted up, but Rockauto's got them for less than half the cost of the billet one. I've heard of people having belt issues with the Quest alt, but I'm not sure if that's because they didn't get the pulley alignment right or if that's just what happens when you ask too much of a V belt.

 

I don't think I've seen a review of the RR alt. I remember someone complaining that the Mean Green had a stock regulator in it (presumably undersized for the rated output), but that was a while ago.

 

I may upgrade mine to the 90A Maxima alt if/when it craps out. For now it seems to be keeping up just fine. If anything on mine is going to eat a stimulus check, it's probably the steering box.

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I installed one in my 2002 Xterra and it has been great. Charges well at idle and has handled winching with no issues. My buddy also installed one in his 2015 X.

Does the 14.8 volts treat your electrical system well or is the voltage less than that for your application?


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I installed one in my 2002 Xterra and it has been great. Charges well at idle and has handled winching with no issues. My buddy also installed one in his 2015 X.

Does the 14.8 volts treat your electrical system well or is the voltage less than that for your application?


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If your voltage remains at 14vdc once the battery is fully charged, you will eventually cook it off. Higher voltage, although desirable in some instances, is not good for your battery if it's already charged.

 

BT.. If you're judging the 14Vdc by the analog gauge on the dash, I recommend installing a digital one. I installed one in the cigarette lighter along with 2 USB connections. Great upgrade!!

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Idk, I last looked to update this thread and it is winter here so I am using the blower/defrost/radio/headlights always on etc. I think it's fine, its been in there for almost a year. I also have an optima yellow top battery and it hasn't roasted it yet. Noticed on a drive today it was in the mid to high 13s so I guess it is doing it's job.

 

The xterra doesn't have a factory voltage gauge. I am using the same thing you have with the usb ports.

 

My pathfinder still has the original alternator.

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On the Toyota & Overland Forums there is alot of discussion about AGM batteries often requiring higher output than stick Toyota alternators put out & that this can lead to premature battery failure in AGMs. I ran an old school Optima Red Top for over a decade with bo problem. My Yellow top did not last as long but still a handful of years (& consistent with the decline of Optima - my 2nd Yellow Top in another vehicle lasted only 3 years). What research I did on this seemed to indicate that the OEM Pathfinder alternator had a higher output than our ‘18 4Runner’s alternator & consequently shouldn’t be a problem. When I queried this in NPORA, general feedback was that it was mostly BS. All that said, the concept of it would support that higher output might, in fact, be beneficial to an AGM battery.

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High output alternators have a higher current (amperage) rating. If that alternator is somehow achieving the higher output with a higher voltage past the initial charging of the battery when you start it up, then there is something wrong. Batteries, when fully charged, will have a float voltage around 13.6 VDC as indicated using a good digital readout (And that is good). If you've been driving for a while and you battery voltage is indicating 14+VDC or conversely 12-VDC , there is a problem. Your battery may have a bad connection, wires badly corroded, alternator not working correctly... etc... 

 

The one reason to have a high output alternator is if you have added a equipment that will be used for an extended amount of time that exceeds the current output of your alternator. If you're running a stock rig and you don't have all of that stuff that would tax your alternator, you don't need to spend the money on the HO alternator. Now, if you've added a winch and a lot of lights, then you just might need that extra current.

 

I would suspect, if you have a winch, and you anticipate using it a lot, your best bet would be to have a second battery since you may not be in the vehicle and it will likely be idling. At Idle, most alternators aren't going to be putting out much current, regardless of being a high output alternator or not.

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I have to use the truck to drop off a server at an office today. I'll check the voltage once it is been running for a bit.

 

I'm not sure I trust the accuracy of the 20 dollar chinese voltmeter/phone charger, though lol.

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Thank you all for the input! Assuming the next stimulus checks are sent out sometime soon, this alternator will be the first thing I purchase. I’m satisfied with the feedback I’m hearing.


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1 hour ago, adamzan said:

I have to use the truck to drop off a server at an office today. I'll check the voltage once it is been running for a bit.

 

I'm not sure I trust the accuracy of the 20 dollar chinese voltmeter/phone charger, though lol.

The original voltmeter that has a range from 6 to 18VDC is not that great of an indicator. It works, don't get me wrong. A working range of 10-15VDC would be preferable with the given range of the OE meter. With that in consideration,  I prefer to have some kind of backup, especially considering these rigs are approaching 30some years old and the electronics get glitchy with age. Even though it's a cheap chinese meter, it works and seems to be accurate enough. ?

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If you want to burn alot of time, here are some extensive battery/alternator threads. I don’t claim to understand any of it.

 

https://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/216665-voltage-booster-31m-agm-battery.html

 

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/alternator-voltage-booster.503895/

 

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2 hours ago, RainGoat said:

If you want to burn alot of time, here are some extensive battery/alternator threads. I don’t claim to understand any of it.

 

https://www.toyota-4runner.org/5th-gen-t4rs/216665-voltage-booster-31m-agm-battery.html

 

https://forum.ih8mud.com/threads/alternator-voltage-booster.503895/

 

@RainGoatThat's some crazy @!*%.

 

I did some skimming and I would tend to attribute the battery(ies) dying due to the Texas Heat and then Cold in the winter, or likely some other external factor/abuse. Batteries die at a rapid rate down in the south, especially after a cold snap below freezing where a bad cell will rear it's ugly head. Also, if you do put 2 batteries in parallel, you better get 2 of the same size, brand new, at the same time so one battery will be less likely to kill the other because it has a marginal cell. If you don't, you're inviting trouble. 

 

Battery problems don't seem to happen so much here in the PNW unless you deplete them and let them sit uncharged. ?

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Different types and chemistries of battery do prefer different charge voltages. I set up an off-grid solar system recently and the charge controller had different modes depending on which batteries you were running. Flooded and AGM were similar, but different enough to have separate modes. The instruction booklet had a table with recovery, bulk charge, and float voltages for each type it supported. The dual battery controllers I've seen advertised have a similar feature, as does the cheap battery charger I've got at the shop (unlike the old style, which is just a transformer with a rectifier and no other regulation, and will happily boil the electrolyte out of a battery if you leave it running too long.)

 

An old-school internally regulated alternator has one target voltage and charges as hard as it's able to maintain that voltage. If the battery is very low, and the alternator is very powerful, it's going to charge that battery hard, possibly harder than it wants. Newer stuff has "smart" alternators with the target voltage set by the ECU, so they can adjust the alt's output to suit the state of charge, engine load, phases of the moon, whatever. Whether the battery life and fuel economy (?) gains are worth this added complexity, I don't know.

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5 hours ago, gamellott said:

@RainGoatThat's some crazy @!*%.

 

I did some skimming and I would tend to attribute the battery(ies) dying due to the Texas Heat and then Cold in the winter, or likely some other external factor/abuse. Batteries die at a rapid rate down in the south, especially after a cold snap below freezing where a bad cell will rear it's ugly head. Also, if you do put 2 batteries in parallel, you better get 2 of the same size, brand new, at the same time so one battery will be less likely to kill the other because it has a marginal cell. If you don't, you're inviting trouble. 

 

Battery problems don't seem to happen so much here in the PNW unless you deplete them and let them sit uncharged. ?

To my knowledge, if you have 2 12V batteries both rated for 100ah and you put them in parallels, that would then equate to 200ah at 12V. in many RV's that's how the batteries are setup, not too sure on the use case for having 6 volts in series though. when I build one of our teardrops for someone and they want 2 batteries this is how we wire them. but same goes for deep cycles in terms of over charging them. many modern Travel Trailers use a DC to DC charge controller to charge the Deep Cycle batteries. although you can run a 12V power wire right from the starter battery to the trailer, it will end up over charging the battery thus boiling off the internals rendering it useless. In my personal trailer I don't bother with a controller, I just run a smart isolator and call it there so I don't have to worry about my starter battery draining over night to my faulty deep cycle (happened too many times). 

 

I'm up in BC and have only had a set of batteries go once in my 6.0, but then again those batteries came from Calgary before I moved if I remember correctly. Even too I've had batteries sitting for weeks on end with out them going dead. maybe about a volt but have yet to pick one up completely flat strange enough. even after being used a bit. 

 

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  • 1 month later...

Bump! Steven with Rugged Rocks is currently building my new 180 amp alternator. Can’t wait! I’ve already upgraded my battery charging wire, ground wires, and added a body to alternator ground. The top voltage with a stock alternator went up from 14.1 to 14.3 volts just by doing that. At this point, the new alternator will be plug-and-play.

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