1987caddy Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Just wanted to tell everyone thanks for the good info here on swapping to 90amp maxima alternator. Used a 1990 model alternator. Bolted right in and just swapped pulleys. Plus saved 80 bucks and got more amps 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmoore4512 Posted June 6, 2012 Share Posted June 6, 2012 Yep, its an awesome mod! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
outoway Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 not to hi-jack, but will the quest/villager 130 amp alt work on the pathy as well? I did that on the frontier i had previously. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmoore4512 Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 Yep, the mod has been extensively covered in the garage section. I planned on it, but couldn't find one, without spending an ARM and a leg right out the gate. The maxima sort was cheaper and does just fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted June 8, 2012 Share Posted June 8, 2012 Quest alty is a little more labor intensive (there's a How-To write up on it if you plan to take te Nestea Plunge into it) where the Maxima alty is basicly bolt on was worth it in my books when I had an alty die on me, was cheaper to get the Maxima one than the correct one anyway Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vagabond Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 When I did the max swap on my 88 I had to space the pully out a bit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesRich Posted June 9, 2012 Share Posted June 9, 2012 The pulley from a 60 amp pathy alternator needs a spacer to fit but the pulley from a 70 amp pathy alternator fits right on. I'm not sure what year they went from 60 to 70 amp but I got mine from a 94. James Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tungsten Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 RockAuto lists the model years as 85-94 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 6, 2012 Share Posted July 6, 2012 (edited) More alternator, info: Pathfinder: 1987 thru 1989 - 60 amp 1990 thru 1995 - 70 amp 1996 thru 2000 - 90 amp 2001 thru 2003 - 110 amp 2004 - 3.5 - 110 amp, 5.6 - 130 amp 2005 thru 2010 - 4.0 - 130 amp, 5.6 - 130 amp 720 - 1980 35 amp, 1981 thru 1986 50 or 60 amp depending on engine Hardbody D21 - 1986 1/2 thru 1989 - 60 amp 1990 thru 1995 - 70 amp 1996 thru 1997 - 60 amp Frontier - 1998 - 70 amp 1999- 2002 - 2.4 - 70 amp - 3.3 - 80 amp 2003 thru 2004 - 2.4 - 70 amp, 3.3 - 100 amp 2005 thru 2007 - 2.5 - 110 amp, 4.0 - 110 amp 2008 thru 2010 - 2.5 - 110 amp, 4.0 - 130 amp no info after 2010 on beck arnley site for alternators Edited July 6, 2012 by ahardb0dy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmoore4512 Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 When I did mine I just had to swap the pulley. It lined up fine. The power increase was intense, I did not think I would notice it, but I certainly did. Especially since whenever my E fan would kick on before the swap I would see the headlights dim, almost like having a huge stereo system. With the new alternator in place I did not experience the dimming as bad... it still dimmed slightly but nowhere near the way it did before. Of course plans change all the time, but initially I had intended on either running a dual alternator setup (one in place of the AC compressor, if it ever failed.) Or putting a compressor in its place that would be able to fill tires, air tanks etc. I have seen dual alternator setups before on big rail rides, seemed kind of like over kill to me, but after seeing a fellah use a welder on the trail... I was sold. Of course the AC still works, and the Maxima alternator has been more than enough... we will see what happens when I add more lights... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 I'm thinking of taking the 110 amp Maxima alternator out of my Sentra and putting it in the pathfinder than getting a 90 amp for the Sentra. There isn't much room in the Sentra and the alternator is very close to hitting ( if not already) the AC lines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmoore4512 Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 Same housing? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 the 110 amp I have now is like this one: and the 90 amp from a SOHC Maxima looks like this one: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmoore4512 Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 From the pictures and what I recall it appears to be the same housing. I never quite understood why they would put different sized units in different vehicles... Especially since it is chepaer to buy a larger amperage alternator anyway... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tungsten Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 The housings are the same although I have seen some that were a little different in the back but still worked. On most of them you can even take the plastic plate on the back of the Pathfinder one and install it on the Maxima one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 the housings in the 2 alt's I posted look the same to you both? The first one the single mounting tab is in a different location compared to the 2nd pic, I think it has a larger housing also. Anyone that swapped over to the 90 amp maxima alternator know if the maxima alt is the same size or larger than the stock one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tungsten Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 Not that top one. That tensioner mounting tab is way off so it's either a DOHC application or maybe a Quest one. You may be able to swap the Pathfinder front end of the alternator on that though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 From the pictures and what I recall it appears to be the same housing. I never quite understood why they would put different sized units in different vehicles... Especially since it is chepaer to buy a larger amperage alternator anyway... Tmoore4512, I'm confused now, are you saying one of the pics I posted is the same housing on the alt YOU swapped into yours? If so which pic? The lower one? Tungsten, the top alt I posted is from a DOHC Maxima and is the one I currently have in my Sentra, all I did to be able to use the stock adjuster bracket was to make a short bracket that is rounded against the alt body and I bolted it to the alt tab, the other end of the bracket goes to the stock adjuster bracket location. the 110 amp alternator from the DOHC Maxima uses a different plug (number 306) compared to the Quest which uses the same plug (number 300) as the pathfinder and my Sentra), I didn't bother getting the alt out of a quest because it looked to be more work to get it out compared to the Maxima one the day I was at the junkyard, so I just cut the Maxima plug off and cut the plug off on my Sentra and spliced the new one in. Also the Maxima alt uses a 6 rib pulley the Quest has a 5 rib, my Sentra has a 4 rib but the auto electric shop I took it to looking to get a 4 rib pulley said it was fine to use a pulley with more ribs because the belt will stay on the 4 ribs I put it on. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tmoore4512 Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 I was referring to the size of the case, not the mounting tabs. My point was that they (the manufacturer) could put a larger alternator on a vehicle without sacrificing space, and that is proven by the maxi, pathy and quest alternators being virtually the same diameter. The mounting tabs are only a mounting obstacle that is easily overcome as shown in the how to section in reference to the Quest alternator... Now I realize that it probably costs more to put a larger output alternator on a vehicle, so that would be a reason for the greedy folks that make the cars...haha... sorry for the rant... I swapped in a SOHC maxima alternator, like the one on the bottom. As for the belt rib deal... yes it will work... I have done it in a pinch, but not for an extended period of time... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 ok, so I just went to my storage unit and grabbed the 2 alternators I had in there, one is a OEM Nissan 1987 Hardbody 60 amp that I removed from my 87 hardbody when I upgraded to the 160 amp Wrangler alt I had made, the second is a replacement 70 amp that was in my sentra. The hardbody alt. of course uses a "V" belt with the external cooling fan, the sentra alt, has an internal fan and originally had a 4 rib pulley but I have a 6 rib on it at the moment ( no idea where the 4 rib pulley is), anyway I tried putting the "V" belt pulley on the sentra alt to see if it would work with out a spacer, It does not, than I noticed the hardbody alt under the fan has a spacer, I wouldn't be able to use this spacer with the sentra alt as it is too long but possibly it would work on a Maxima alt?? I have also read that some alt's do not need a spacer at all so who knows.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tungsten Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 Can you by any chance transplant (or cut up) the external cooling fan? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 7, 2012 Share Posted July 7, 2012 The one I was comparing is for a Sentra so it may have a different shaft than one for a maxima, my maxima alt is in the car installed and I didn't have to do anything with the pulley. Without having a Maxima alt on my bench to compare I couldn't say anything as to how the D21 pulley fits. But on the sentra alt, No you can't use the external fan. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 8, 2012 Share Posted July 8, 2012 (edited) Made a junkyard run this morning, man was it hot out there today !! Picked up a alternator out of a 90ish ( forgot what it said on the truck) Mercury Villager. I actually pulled out another one first but I saw it was reman so I left it. Second one I pulled out ( and bought) I thought it was OEM as it had the green in the middle than after removing it I saw it was a reman also, but it was really clean so I bought it. Stopped at Advance to have it tested, they have a new machine, it gives more info after the test, like ripple (what ever that is), anyway it passed all the tests. oh, it was out of a 98 I think and is 110 amps Edited July 8, 2012 by ahardb0dy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nunya Posted July 8, 2012 Share Posted July 8, 2012 I have also read that some alt's do not need a spacer at all so who knows.. I seem to see the common trend being the TBI people are the ones who have to space the pully swap while the MPFI people seem to not have to most cases Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahardb0dy Posted July 9, 2012 Share Posted July 9, 2012 I grinded down that lip on mine like Nissan Nut did, got the pulley on good, didn't have a spacer to use except the one that was on my hardbody alt and didn't want to mess with trying to cut it. Tomorrow will be the fun part getting it installed and modifying the bracket to work. I have to say that rear bolt was a pain in the as- to get out! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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