Alternate Alternator Upgrade - Nissan/Infiniti

[andyofcolumbusmerkur]

Cool. Now you have some spare amps for a sound system upgrade.

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Well done! It'll be interesting to see if my 110A alternator case is any smaller and thus might need less persuasion to fit, and possibly no need for the after-market locator bracket. Time will tell.

So the pulley is the stock part, re-worked?

[brokencase]

Brad - it's possible that the 110 amp unit may fit easier. But I still think you may have to cut back the mounting boss on the Scorpio to get proper pulley alignment.

I'm using the Bosch pulley. On the lathe I machined a recess so the nut could reach the threads. I also machined a small sleeve that went underneath the pulley.

[DPDISXR4Ti]

But I still think you may have to cut back the mounting boss on the Scorpio to get proper pulley alignment.

I'm fine with that. Having an extra set of brackets and engine certainly helps with that process.

I'm using the Bosch pulley. On the lathe I machined a recess so the nut could reach the threads. I also machined a small sleeve that went underneath the pulley.

Okay, got it. I have a Logan 820 lathe but I'd still prefer to just use a factory part (any factory!) if I can find one. I enjoy the treasure hunt aspect of finding stuff at the junkyard that works, but was never designed to work.

[brokencase]

If you find a pulley at one of the yards let us know what it is.

Something weird happened this afternoon when I took the car out for a shakedown run. I had driven about 5 miles and I was siting at a light and I could have sworn that I saw a puff of smoke coming out of the front of the car. I pulled out of traffic and drove into the gas station on the corner.

I popped the hood (with engine still running) but saw nothing. I have one of those voltmeters that plugs into the cigarette lighter and it still showed 13.6 Volts so the alternator was still working.

Headed home without incident. Popped the hood and looked around for something that might have "cooked" but I could not find anything.
Checked all the fuses, checked that the SENSE wire had continuity, checked the battery with my battery tester etc... Restarting the car and I had correct ALT lamp function.

It's a mystery at this point. I'll do some more investigation tomorrow.

[brokencase]

Took it out for a few more shakedown drives and everything seems to be in order. I can't figure out what that puff of smoke was on the weekend.

With the new alternator the system voltage (as measured on the cigarette lighter) is solid - always 13.8-14.0 volts.
I have observed the original Bosch alternator drop to 11.5 volts at idle with the A/C on.

Looking back at what I have done I now think it is possible to do this swap without any grinding of metal off of the Hitachi alternator.
There are two casting protrusions that prevent the adjusting bracket from going flush to the alternator lower mount. In hindsight it was not necessary for these to be ground off. I could have put a spacer between the bracket and the mount lobe to avoid that. I could then have bent a slight offset into the bracket. I should have done it that way.

So really from a mounting perspective all you need to do is mod the Scorpio cast iron mount.
1) Using a die grinder with a carbide burr - grind the webbing that restricts the swing of the alternator away from the engine. Not much needs to be removed.
2) Depending on how your pulley alignment plays out - you will probably have to cut off about 1/4" of the front of the cast iron mount to move the whole alternator towards the back of the car. I used a 4 inch electric grinder with a cutting disc.

None of these mods prevent you from reverting back to the original alternator. You would just have to put a spacer to take up the gap on the front of the Bosch unit.

The hardest parts are modding the pulley and modifying the aftermarket Mr. Gasket adjustment bracket.

Not a "drop-in" but pretty darn close.

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Yesterday looked like it was to be the coolest day over the next month, so I went junkyarding. Why wouldn't I?

I found a 2003 Nissan 350Z that someone had already cut the nose off, revealing an easy-to-remove, rebuilt alternator. So I felt obligated to remove it. Ya know, cuz I need a spare for a part I'm not even using yet. I got a long run of harness and all the mounting hardware; the locating bracket might actually be usable.

As long as I was in the import section, I went looking for a V-belt pulley. You may recall from our earlier discussion that 90's Hondas and Nissans were supposed to be possible donors. That info is false. Every single one I looked at had a Micro-V belt pulley, not V-belt. So I'll either need to buy one or machine my spare one off the Bosch.

[taylor0987]

...
As long as I was in the import section, I went looking for a V-belt pulley. You may recall from our earlier discussion that 90's Hondas and Nissans were supposed to be possible donors. That info is false. Every single one I looked at had a Micro-V belt pulley, not V-belt. So I'll either need to buy one or machine my spare one off the Bosch.

If you were looking for this pulley
"1-Groove machined pulley cut from cold rolled steel. For Hitachi type alternators, unit numbers LR150-711, LR160-723, LR160-723B, LR160-724, LR160-725, LR160-725C, LR160-727, LR170-757B, used on (2001-90) Honda, Isuzu, Nissan vehicles."
then those alternators cross reference only to some Nissan trucks: 2.4 liter Nissan pickup truck (hardbody?) 1990-97, 2.4 liter Xterra and Frontier 1998-2004,
and these Isuzu models
ISUZU AMIGO 2.3L 1989-1993
ISUZU AMIGO 2.6L 1989-1994
ISUZU PICKUP 2.3L 1986-1995
ISUZU PICKUP 2.6L 1988-1995
ISUZU RODEO 2.6L 1991-1992
ISUZU TROOPER 2.3L 1986-1987
ISUZU TROOPER 2.6L 1988-1991
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK AMIGO 2.6L 1993-1994
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK PICKUP 2.3L 1993-1995
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK PICKUP 2.6L 1993-1995
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK RODEO 2.6L 1993-1995
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK AMIGO 2.3L 1989-1992
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK AMIGO 2.6L 1989-1992
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK PICKUP 2.3L 1988-1992
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK PICKUP 2.6L 1988-1992
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK RODEO 2.6L 1991-1992
ISUZU CAR & LT TRK TROOPER 2.3L 1986-1987

The only Honda they cross to is the 94-95 Passport 2.6 liter which is a rebadged Isuzu Rodeo

(of course you don't want those particular alternators because a lot of them are just 50 or 60 amp)
edit:spot checking a couple of those on Rockauto, they do have V-belts listed as replacement parts and not micro-v's
edit: Passport=Rodeo rather than Trooper.

[taylor0987]

checking the u-picks near me, there aren't any 4 cylinder Isuzu's to be found. There are tons of Xterras but *none* with the 2.4.
I'll keep my eye on their inventory and if one of the vehicles on that list shows up, I will go pull a pulley for the cause!

[DPDISXR4Ti]

If you were looking for this pulley
"1-Groove machined pulley cut from cold rolled steel. For Hitachi type alternators, unit numbers LR150-711, LR160-723, LR160-723B, LR160-724, LR160-725, LR160-725C, LR160-727, LR170-757B, used on (2001-90) Honda, Isuzu, Nissan vehicles."
then those alternators cross reference only to some Nissan trucks: 2.4 liter Nissan pickup truck (hardbody?) 1990-97, 2.4 liter Xterra and Frontier,
and these Isuzu models...

Ah, good detective work! I just assumed "cars", not trucks. Checking Harry's on-line inventory now, I see I may have walked right past a couple of possible donors!

[DPDISXR4Ti]

checking the u-picks near me, there aren't any 4 cylinder Isuzu's to be found. There are tons of Xterras but *none* with the 2.4.
I'll keep my eye on their inventory and if one of the vehicles on that list shows up, I will go pull a pulley for the cause!

Yesterday was forecasted as the last day (of the year?) with mid-50's temps, so naturally I went junkyarding. Decided to include v-belt pulleys in my search and thought I might have a winner in a 1997 4-cyl Isuzu Hombre pickup. Nope! Starting in '97 the Isuzu was nothing more than a re-badged Chevy S-10, complete with more modern Micro-V pulleys. '88 - '96 Isuzu pickups might still be a viable donor, but I won't hold my breath on finding one of those.

The only possible donor I found was from a '92 Ranger 2.9. It's a V-belt pulley with the correct shaft size and about right offset. Only issue is the O.D. of the snub is just a bit too large and interferes with the case. Should be an easy job with the lathe as it's just a clearance thing. I'll put it in the "Round Tuit" pile.

As Taylor suggested above, 90's Nissan Hardbody and Frontiers w/ the 4-cyl are probably the most common donor, but those are getting rare due to age.

And yes, I know it would be much easier to just go buy a pulley.

[brokencase]

Well...all the reason to get a metal lathe.

To ease alignment, you want a pulley that gets the belt as close to the alternator as possible.

BTW, the Titan alternator is working out great so far. I have been driving the Scorpio to work on and off for the past few weeks and no issues.

One interesting note.. A while back I replaced my instrument cluster bulbs with LEDs. The only problem I noticed was that the dash lights would flicker every once an a while. It did this with the Bosch OR the Titan alternator. Which kinda sucked because I was hoping the Titan alternator would have addressed it.

Now, since I have owned my Scorpio the illumination dimmer has been broken. This weekend I pulled the dimmer switch to see if I could fix it.
What happened was the "axle" on one side of the adjuster knob broke. Rather than address the issue the previous owner unplugged the switch and put a jumper across the connector to at least have the lights illuminate - albeit at full brightness.

So..I drilled a hole in the knob and glued a small steel rod in. Re-assembled and voul-la! Not only do I now have adjustable illumination back, but the flicker is now also gone. I'm pretty sure the dimmer also has a voltage regulator built into it which explains everything.

[Bob Weir]

Scorpios usually don't have a problem with flickering lights, especially in the instrument cluster. Good to hear the Titan is working well for you.
Any chance you'll make it to Carlisle this year?

[DPDISXR4Ti]

Well...all the reason to get a metal lathe.

Already have a Logan 820. Just have a bunch of stuff in front of it right now - both physically and virtually (other projects).

[brokencase]

Bob - I'll try to make it in 2020. I do make it to Carlisle from time to time, but it is usually for the import show.
Last time I made to the Ford show was when I went to one of the very early Merkur gatherings in the 90's...when this fuzzy and dated picture was taken.. My first white '8 Scorpio is in the one in the middle.