88pathoffroad Posted April 24, 2004 Share Posted April 24, 2004 I got my Quest/Villager alternator today, had it tested and cleaned it up. I'm in the process of installing it right now and I expect it to be done tonight. I've taken lots of pics and I intend to post a complete step by step how-to page when I'm done, including parts and modifications. Be back soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 24, 2004 Author Share Posted April 24, 2004 These alternators are amazingly alike. Very close match. The Quest alt. is definitely beefier. Right now, I'm waiting to find a properly sized belt to use with the new alternator, and am working out the details on making the adjuster bracket work with the new alternator. The alternator is hung, wired and ready to run except for the belt and adjuster bracket. I added a 4 guage charging wire running directly up to the main battery, and when I'm done, I'll be running two batteries on a 110 amp alternator. Quite the upgrade from a single battery and a 60 amp alt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MatterHorn Posted April 24, 2004 Share Posted April 24, 2004 that is definately sweet ... i'd love to see the pics of your mod to the adjuster too ... this will definately be in the very near future for me ... maybe one of these days I wont have to carry a spare around with me ... lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikesmaximase Posted April 24, 2004 Share Posted April 24, 2004 Hey, I got mine in there and all wired up and the top two bolts in also. Whats your idea on the adjusted bracket. It seems as if you use a metal plate (rectangle with a hole on either end) put it in front of the adjuster square and put a bolt there then also a bolt to connect to to alt. So the adjuster actually sits undernith the alt? Maybe not the best idea. But I have just started thinking.HAHA. Structure wise I dont know if its the best setup. Id rather put it back how it was designed. I also thought of where the adjuster bracket bolts to the block to put a spacer behind that and get a longer bolt so the bracket sticks off the block, But im not sure if the crank pulley will be in the way of that one. I know its close. But what you got for ideas???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
somethingcool Posted April 24, 2004 Share Posted April 24, 2004 Hmm, doesn't look like it's sealed nearly as well as the pathy one, hope it lasts... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikesmaximase Posted April 24, 2004 Share Posted April 24, 2004 Ok I made that rectangular plate, but i made it with two arms (kinda looks like a holy cross) The arms I bent so they squeeze the adjuster square on the Pathfinder so the plate cant go anywhere/side to side. So I put a nut, bolt and a lock washer in there. then from the center of that hole i market 1" up and center punched another hole. Drilled out a hole to fit the bolt into the bottom of the alternator. Keeping the center of hole to hole makes it snugg right up against the adjuster bracket so it cannot go anywhere. Now time to goto lappenes and get a longer belt and test it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 25, 2004 Author Share Posted April 25, 2004 I fixed the adjuster bracket problem and... It's running top-notch now and I'm just crossing my fingers, hoping it lasts! Updates tomorrow, with MANY pics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 25, 2004 Author Share Posted April 25, 2004 How-To: Swapping the stock VG30 engined Pathfinder 60 amp alternator with a Quest/Villager 110 amp alternator. This is by no means an end-all, tell-all way of doing this swap, it's just how I personally did it and what I used to do so. If you can come up with a better way of doing some part of this swap, feel free to post here and let us all know! Parts needed: Misc nuts, bolts, washers New/used/junkyard Quest/Villager 110A alternator Replacement alternator v-belt, approx 10 mm longer than stock alternator belt(17380, 17370 is the stock part #) Bicycle/small motorcycle rear wheel chain tensioner (or you can re-use the stock tensioner block and bolt) (Optional) 6' of 4 guage battery cable with ring terminals crimped on Tools needed: 4" angle grinder Metric hand tools(sockets, wrenches, pliers, etc) Large bench vise(alternatively, a BFH and a concrete floor or sidewalk) Hacksaw Bench grinder Note: A lot of hand-fabrication/modification/grinding/fitting is involved in this project, so if you don't have a grinder or means to cut and shape steel and aluminum, try to borrow a friend's garage or something. Procure a alternator from a 1993-1995 Nissan Quest minivan or Mercury Villager. Same vehicle, different name. Same alternator, a Mitsubishi 110 amp unit. I got mine for $50 at a local junkyard. It beats the auto parts store price of $172 new with a $95 core. Remove the alternator from your Pathfinder. Take both alternators in to a Schucks/Checker/Kragen or auto parts store. Have the Quest alternator tested to make sure it works OK(if used or from junkyard). Get the parts person to use an impact wrench or similar tool to unbolt the pulleys on both alternators for you. This is TONS easier than trying to loosen the bolt yourself at home! If they can't do that for you, you can do it at home with the help of a bench vise and large wrenches, but it really is a pain in the hiney. The Quest alternator pulley nut is a 24mm and the stock Pathy pulley nut is a 22mm. Clean up the new alternator(if used). Now that the pulleys have been removed, you will need either several thin washers or some shims to space the Pathfinder pulley outward on the Quest alternator. If you simply bolt the Pathy pulley on, it will press against the housing of the alternator and effectively lock up the shaft. I happened to have several such washers on hand. They measured .1" thick, .7" inside diameter by .85" outside diameter(sorry about the standard measurements, but my micrometer is graduated that way). The actual alternator shaft measures about .69", so these washers fit great. I used 3 of them to get the pulley spaced out properly. Then the Quest lock washer and nut goes back on the alternator, and you're ready for the next step. You will need to cut/grind some of the aluminum housing away on the Quest alternator case in two places. The first place to work on is the adjuster bolt tab and a bit of the case right beside that. For one thing it's positioned differently than the stock Pathy alternator, and for another thing it's too thick(sticks out too far towards the front) to work with the Pathfinder bracket/engine block. You'll need to remove about 1/2" of material from the front side of the tab, so that the tab is nearly flush with the rest of the case. Refer to the pictures here for a visual representation of what needs to be done. The clearancing I did on the case and the head of the case bolt just to the right of the adjuster tab is to allow the adjuster bracket to fit better. The second place to remove material is on top of the case on the engine block side. When the alternator is mounted from the top pivot bolts, the larger size of the case will not allow enough side-to-side movement to allow for proper tensioning/movement of the alternator. Removing material on this side of the case simply allows the alternator to swing further towards the engine, allowing easier removal of the belt. If you don't clearance the case for this, it'll only have about 1" of side-to-side movement(not much for belt adjustment...). I would also suggest grinding down the steel insert on the back side of the alternator pivot tab for inside clearance. It's a tight fit onto the pivot bracket the way it comes out of the box. The yellow box on the pic indicates the steel insert I clearanced and the green box represents the case clearancing. Remove the stock adjuster bracket from the bottom of the Pathfinder engine block. We're going to have to modify this to make it work with the new alternator. A lot. Pic of the stock adjuster hanging with the new alternator bolted up. Notice that the stock belt won't fit. http://Nissan.damagedreality.com/needsnewbelt.jpg Refer to provided pictures for modifications to the adjuster bracket. It took a lot of grinding, cutting and regrinding the bracket to get it to fit properly. You'll need to drill a new bolt hole in it to bolt it back to the engine block. I used a rear wheel chain tensioner for a 20" freestyle bicycle or small motorcycle for a belt tensioner. The stock tensioner is pretty thick/bulky, but will go back on with the new alternator and the reshaped bracket somewhat decently. Refer to pictures for a good idea of what I used. Outline of stock bracket with cut-off piece. I originally tried to get the bracket to fit by simply drilling a new hole, but there was no way it would fit like that so I used a hacksaw and cut it off. Finished bracket beside outline of original: Side view. Originally, the bracket had a couple of bends in it. I stuck the bracket in a vise and cranked it until the bracket flattened out. It basically needs to be flat when you're done with it. http://Nissan.damagedreality.com/adjuster3.jpg Another view: http://Nissan.damagedreality.com/adjuster4.jpg Finished results will vary, but should be a close match for proper fit. Bolt the new alternator onto your engine. Bolt the new bracket onto the engine. Check for fit. Route new charging cable from back of alternator up to battery. Bolt up old charging wire, new charging wire, and ground wire to new alternator. Connect other end of new charging wire to battery terminal. Reconnect the two-wire plug on the back of the alternator. Put the new belt on. Use a new bolt, nut, washers and the chain tensioner to connect the alternator to the adjuster bracket. Adjust using the chain tensioner, re-check belt tension, all bolts and connections, then reinstall the A/C belt, the P/S belt, re-tension those and you're done. Double check everything to make sure you didn't miss anything. Check with a voltmeter to make sure you're getting 14 volts or so with the engine at idle. Mine ran at about 18 volts for a few minutes, then settled down to 14.4 when it warmed up. Just make sure it doesn't run at 18 volts all the time, or you'll fry quite a few things. Having a 3" body lift makes it easier to put it on, as you can see. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
statikuz Posted April 25, 2004 Share Posted April 25, 2004 Very sly. =) I'm not so sure I'm adventurous enough to try all that, but it looks very cool nevertheless. =) Nice job! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 25, 2004 Author Share Posted April 25, 2004 Thanks, man. The above information will always be available on my website at this link: http://www.damagedreality.com/altswap.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tram_bethea Posted April 25, 2004 Share Posted April 25, 2004 that is amazing dude Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikesmaximase Posted April 25, 2004 Share Posted April 25, 2004 You should of just made an attatchment bracket like I did, hell of alot easier and less time consuming, works great. Ill have to get some pictures of it if I can get a clear shot of the bracket on there with one of my buddies digital camera some day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigMike Posted April 25, 2004 Share Posted April 25, 2004 sweet write up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 26, 2004 Author Share Posted April 26, 2004 You should of just made an attatchment bracket like I did, hell of alot easier and less time consuming, works great. Ill have to get some pictures of it if I can get a clear shot of the bracket on there with one of my buddies digital camera some day. Hmmm...does your bracket allow for belt stretch and retensioning like the stock one? I was just trying to re-use as many stock components as possible so I wouldn't have to make something different that other people might not be able to find materials for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikesmaximase Posted April 26, 2004 Share Posted April 26, 2004 Yeh, I am still able to tension it just like stock. It worked great for me, Ill have to get you a picture so you can see what Im talking about exactly. The only thing I bought was a longer belt by 2"s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikesmaximase Posted April 26, 2004 Share Posted April 26, 2004 Well I finally decided to splurge and buy a 10 dollar battery for my digital camera, Some things I just hate paying so much for. HAHAHA! After the rain clears prob thursday Ill take a picture for you of my bracket. How you enjoying yours so far? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 26, 2004 Author Share Posted April 26, 2004 Just fine, thanks. Lights are brighter, stereo's louder, heater fan blows harder, and it accelerates faster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikesmaximase Posted April 29, 2004 Share Posted April 29, 2004 Ok,I know you cant really see this very good installed but maybe you can see it enough you know what Im talking about. I wish things were as clean here in MA as they are near you. The winter here puts a coating over everything. You can even see wat size belt I used in the picture. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted April 29, 2004 Author Share Posted April 29, 2004 Good idea. Looks like that works fine to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
edta1 Posted October 6, 2004 Share Posted October 6, 2004 I got my Quest/Villager alternator today, had it tested and cleaned it up. I'm in the process of installing it right now and I expect it to be done tonight. I've taken lots of pics and I intend to post a complete step by step how-to page when I'm done, including parts and modifications. Be back soon. Hi, I'm new to this aftermarket thing. What's the difference in the 2 alternators? Do you get more HP or something? And what's with 2 batteries when all you need is 1 to start the car. Sorry for the ignorance but I'm really new to modding and this aftermarket stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted October 7, 2004 Author Share Posted October 7, 2004 The stock alternator only puts out about 60 amps. Good for a bone-stock vehicle and battery. Bad for a vehicle with eight offroad lights, aftermarket stereo with two amps, back-up lights, underbody lights, etc. The upgraded alternator puts out 110 amps. MUCH better for lights and accessories. Maybe a little better for HP too, but not noticeably. The dual batteries split the load between starting/running the vehicle and running the auxiliary components I have installed. On mine, the rear battery feeds the stereo amplifiers, roof lights, rock lights and the back-up lights. A single battery up front will only cover so much power usage before killing your alternator. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runnerman Posted October 17, 2004 Share Posted October 17, 2004 Hey 88 just doing some reading and that is :cool2:. Just wondering if you had explored the option of taking your stock alternator and getting the amperage up'd? As when I had my ford Ranger I did that it costed around $100. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted October 18, 2004 Author Share Posted October 18, 2004 They wanted more than that, if I remember correctly. This alternator upgrade only cost me $50 from the junkyard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
88pathoffroad Posted November 30, 2004 Author Share Posted November 30, 2004 The install on a VG30E is exactly the same as on a VG30i. MaritimeMan and I installed one on his '92 in a few hours with no problems and used the exact same procedures and steps. I only took one pic of it, because it was the same all the way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MaritimeMan Posted December 3, 2004 Share Posted December 3, 2004 Hey buddy, she's a '91, get it straight. Thats like me callin your's a '90.5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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