chappy Posted October 5, 2007 Share Posted October 5, 2007 I'm going to get my alty tested and if it's going I'm gonna swap it myself. Are there any precautions I should watch for other than disconnect the pos on the battery? Anything special to do with the belt while it's being swapped? It doesn't look like there is much underneath so should be pretty painless right?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
XPLORx4 Posted October 5, 2007 Share Posted October 5, 2007 I'm going to get my alty tested and if it's going I'm gonna swap it myself. Are there any precautions I should watch for other than disconnect the pos on the battery? Anything special to do with the belt while it's being swapped? It doesn't look like there is much underneath so should be pretty painless right?! It's actually easier to remove the alternator from the top of the engine compartment. You'll need to remove the battery to provide enough room to pull out the alternator. There are also some body brackets that hold on the + battery cable/harness that you might need to loosen as well. You can just move the belt aside after you've removed it from the alternator pulley. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adamzan Posted October 5, 2007 Share Posted October 5, 2007 When I first saw this thread I thought it read alternate to r50, and I was gunna say wd21. Too tired. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02silverpathy Posted October 6, 2007 Share Posted October 6, 2007 depending on the year of your rig--96-99--go get the Quest alty as it is much larger amperage than the pathy alty....plenty here can help you swap it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chappy Posted October 9, 2007 Author Share Posted October 9, 2007 (edited) Thanks guys it's an 02 se I didn't think there would be enough room topside but I guess the bat does take up some good working room. Edited October 9, 2007 by chappy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sw Posted October 10, 2007 Share Posted October 10, 2007 (edited) in order to try and say you some cash - its rare for the windings in alternators to 'go'. normally the regulator has stopped working. if your not confident an auto sparky can put a new regulator in for much cheaper than whole another alternator. if its a bosch alternator, im not familiar with r50's, here in australia regulators are $50 and take about 5 minutes to change. another alternator from a wrecker would easily be over $100. Edited October 10, 2007 by sw Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Simon Posted October 10, 2007 Share Posted October 10, 2007 The other thing that could have happened is that the brushes got gummed up, and have pulled back from the shaft. That's an easy fix as well, as you just have to clean the sliders for the brushes, lubricate them a bit, and put it back together. It's common on Nissan's that have been taken through deep mud. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02silverpathy Posted October 10, 2007 Share Posted October 10, 2007 The later gen R50's have a large alty on them, so forget the Quest swap! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dkpath96 Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 Lately I've been hunting down the cause of some serious high-pitched squealing originating from somewhere near the front of the engine, which I thought were bad belts. Had all the belts replaced, and still have the squealing. Mech says it's the alternator's bearings. I think it could be the tensioner pulley (the top left one). Any other suggestions as to narrowing down the origin of the squeal? I have not been able to pinpoint its source by ear... Also, as for the Quest alty swap, apparently the higher 120 amp Quest alternator won't do any damage to the electrical system? Can someone verify/explain why, seeing as the OEM alty is like 60-70 amp? I am not an electrical engineer, how does this work? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BowTied Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 Lately I've been hunting down the cause of some serious high-pitched squealing originating from somewhere near the front of the engine, which I thought were bad belts. Had all the belts replaced, and still have the squealing. Mech says it's the alternator's bearings. I think it could be the tensioner pulley (the top left one). Any other suggestions as to narrowing down the origin of the squeal? I have not been able to pinpoint its source by ear... Also, as for the Quest alty swap, apparently the higher 120 amp Quest alternator won't do any damage to the electrical system? Can someone verify/explain why, seeing as the OEM alty is like 60-70 amp? I am not an electrical engineer, how does this work? Use a length of rubber hose, like fuel line, to your ear like a stethascope to help hear the noise. Just be careful around the moving parts. Failing that you'll need to partially remove the belt to free wheel the alt or the idler to feel for the bad bearings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shift220 Posted January 8, 2009 Share Posted January 8, 2009 Lately I've been hunting down the cause of some serious high-pitched squealing originating from somewhere near the front of the engine, which I thought were bad belts. Had all the belts replaced, and still have the squealing. Mech says it's the alternator's bearings. I think it could be the tensioner pulley (the top left one). Any other suggestions as to narrowing down the origin of the squeal? I have not been able to pinpoint its source by ear... Also, as for the Quest alty swap, apparently the higher 120 amp Quest alternator won't do any damage to the electrical system? Can someone verify/explain why, seeing as the OEM alty is like 60-70 amp? I am not an electrical engineer, how does this work? The extra amps will be fine in any electrical system as long as the gauge of wire is large enough going from the alternator to the battery. I'm not sure what the R50 has stock for the size of wiring but upgrading would only improve the efficiency of the system. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoPathyGo Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 Looks like later Pathfinders have 110 Amp alternators. Alternator NASC0024 Type A3TB4291 MITSUBISHI make Nominal rating 12V-110A Ground polarity Negative Minimum revolution under no-load (When 13.5V is applied) Less than 1,300 rpm Hot output current (When 13.5V is applied) More than 35A/1,300 rpm More than 91A/2,500 rpm More than 110A/5,000 rpm Regulated output voltage 14.1 - 14.7V Minimum length of brush More than 5.00 mm (0.197 in) Brush spring pressure 4.8 - 6.0 N (490 - 610 g, 17.28 - 21.51 oz) Slip ring minimum outer diameter More than 22.1 mm (0.870 in) Rotor (Field coil) resistance 1.7 - 2.1W Probably necessity given some of the interior lights are 10W and the rear turn signal is 27W. Makes me think that switching out for lower-wattage LED bulbs is a cheap way to boost effective capacity. Beats buying another alternator! FYI, the stock battery is 582 CCA with 52 AH capacity. For reference, the biggest non-commercial Optima Yellowtop is 870 CCA and Capacity (C/20 rate) is 55 Ah. Not bad Nissan! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fukinitupagain Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 depending on the year of your rig--96-99--go get the Quest alty as it is much larger amperage than the pathy alty....plenty here can help you swap it! When I did my engine swap back in Dec. I swapped in a Quest alt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoPathyGo Posted May 31, 2009 Share Posted May 31, 2009 (edited) I'm going to try swapping in a Maxima alternator. Hitachi 160 Amp for the 02-03 Maxima and various Murano/Infiniti models. 50% more than my existing 110 Amp Mitsu unit. Schematic looked very similar to the Pathfinder - but then again, it's not like they're going to be massively different. Got a used one cheap (<$100). If it doesn't fit/work, I can always ebay it. Edited May 31, 2009 by GoPathyGo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keelhaul Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 I had a nasty squeal on startup even with a new belt. I replaced the idler(tensioner pulley) and that solved the problem. my a/c idler started chirping a few months before so i changed both at the same time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OfftourRoadie96 Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 depending on the year of your rig--96-99--go get the Quest alty as it is much larger amperage than the pathy alty....plenty here can help you swap it! I have a 96....are you saying an Alternator from a 96-99 Nissan Quest will work better?? I plan to add off-road lighting to my rig and also plan to add power to a pull along camper to run electricity through the trailer wiring harness to possibly charge a Optima Marine Battery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02silverpathy Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 Yup! It has more factory output. The only modification you have to perform is the pulley swap from your old Alty. You may need to grind the case of the Quest alty a bit also, when you put the Pathfinder pulley on, you will see that it needs ground very little. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmycapp Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 I have some bearing chirp coming from my passenger side. I think it has to be p/s or alt because it did it on the old motor, and the p/s and alt are used on the new one. I'll try the hose trick to narrow it down. Good thinkin! 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FUELER Posted June 19, 2009 Share Posted June 19, 2009 VG33 QX4's have 110 amp alternators, you could try one of those. But the Quest is still 10 amps higher. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoPathyGo Posted June 20, 2009 Share Posted June 20, 2009 I still haven't installed my Hitachi alternator. Even with 2 batteries and all my accessories running like normal, the alternator's doing fine. Both YellowTops are fully charged. I reduced power consumption by switching various bulbs to LEDs (the various incandescents, from dome lights to license plate lights to turn signal lights, can burn 5-20 watts apiece with no problems) but that's been offset by a double-DIN head with a screen, a new amp and various other stuff. Guess if it ain't broke, I don't need to fix it. I'll keep the Hitachi in case the stock unit fails. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blevinger Posted April 26, 2013 Share Posted April 26, 2013 Lately I've been hunting down the cause of some serious high-pitched squealing originating from somewhere near the front of the engine, which I thought were bad belts. Had all the belts replaced, and still have the squealing. Mech says it's the alternator's bearings. I think it could be the tensioner pulley (the top left one). I just had both pulleys replaced...and some squeal is gone but now it's pretty obvious the alternator is also loud-as-heck...louder than all other moving components combined. How much time does that sucker have left? Buy a new Quest alternator, or go try to find a junked van? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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