71Gold posted up his super clean engine in a thread. I noticed he was using a late alternator... Anyway, I have gathered that the alt is off a late model truck, and is compatible with our mounting bracket. Also, that it is 3 wire and 95 amp. I was wondering a few more things, and also thought that a dedicated thread might bring this mod to light for other members that might (and should) be interested. Does this alt do away with all the regulator wiring on the fender apron? What functions do each of the 3 wires have? Is this internally reg'd? Is it compatible with a trunk mounted battery/solenoid? Thanks! Dave
once my EFI is one my car, im going to a 3G (third gen) alternator from the late 94-95 5.o engines. it's internally regulated, produces 130 amps and continues to use your factory warning light. not to mention, it mounts in place as well.....
Dave; I have this alt in my car, and yes, it does away with all the regulator wiring and regulator, cleaning up the apron. BTW, the fan motors, AC motors and everything else works better, and, I feel a difference in the engine.....more power. Funny how having the right amount of power to the ignition will make it work better...........
I did the same on my 88 engine,,, I think it makes the alt run a peak power at all times instead of a regulated steady increase or decrease in amperage. It does work, but I think its possible to wear the brushes out quicker than it would be in a stock mannor. It does have more amperage and helps run the accesories better though,,,, Chad
The brushes usually only have low current 13 volts going through them to the rotor regardless of the output capability of the alternator. The large output current comes from the large number of windings in the stator which is induced by the rotor.
What would regualte the voltage? or is it full amp potential all the time? Im worried bout overcharging the battery. Chad
The internal regulator senses the current requirements of the battery and accessories and changes the voltage to the rotor accordingly. Without this varying control voltage the alternator would only have a low output at low rpm and a high output at high rpm. As a battery reaches full charge it's internal resistance increases, lowering the load seen by the alternator. The regulator senses this and decreases the output. This is why a battery will sometimes get overcharged and cooked when a regulator goes bad, it supplies too much control voltage to the rotor. When the regulator goes bad and doesn't provide any control voltage the battery doesn't get charged and dies.
How do I wire this up? I have a 86 T-Bird 5.0. serp. belt going into a 71 Maverick V8. What wire goes where?
On my 88 t-bird plug,, the black heavy wire tothe positive battery terminal,, the other two, just tied together. If you hold a metal object to the armature,, it should stick like a magnet if its working. I think you can put the guage inbetween the two smaller wires,, but i dont know for sure,,,, Chad
