Replacing alternator in '93 integra.

Step 1: Climb up car's ass after removing drivers side wheel, axle.
Step 2: Forcefully shove arms into places and feel for critical bolts (try not to drop wrench on face)
Step 3: God dammit theres not a hole big enough for the alternator to come out
Step 4: Remove obstruction (alternator mounting bracket)

Repeat in reverse for new alternator installation

8/20/2008 10:04:31 AM

Had the total opposite experience yesterday replacing the water pump on the cummins. Went into it expecting to have to remover half of everything on the engine like i'm more accustomed to. 15 minutes later BOOM done. Remove belt, remove 2 bolts, replace two bolts, replace belt. Fill with coolant.

I was pretty happy and pleasantly surprised with something for a change.

8/20/2008 10:52:11 AM

^and if his chair was tall enough, he would have done it sitting down. with a liquor drink in one hand.

8/20/2008 11:04:31 AM

a water pump on a cummins is a breeze

8/20/2008 11:12:34 AM

hmmm, sounds like a saturn alternator. you can get the thing off easy enough, but actually pulling it from the car is a different story.

^^, ^
oh yeah, it damn well better be easy since they apparently were attempting to make the 94+ trucks freaking mid engine by shoving half of it back under the cowl/firewall. you're tricked into thinking there might actually be something occupying all the space under that fan shroud coming 5ft. off the radiator.

still, no cummins holds a candle to a powerstroke in the "pain in the ass diesel" department. especially the 6.0's. whoever decided it would be a good idea to require THE DAMN CAB TO COME OFF for any semi major engine repair should be strangled. i guess it shouldn't be surprising from the same geniuses that also thought injectors fired by oil pressure and integrating wiring harnesses into valve cover gaskets was smart.

8/20/2008 2:03:52 PM

My current record is 10 hours for an alternator swap. It involved the hands of several japanese schoolchildren and half a roll of twine. That's all I'm going to say about it.

8/20/2008 2:33:10 PM

amen to that

Quote :

"hmmm, sounds like a saturn alternator. you can get the thing off easy enough, but actually pulling it from the car is a different story."

8/20/2008 3:05:09 PM

^^ lol

I guess everything can't be easy to get on/off...

How much would that alternator change have been at a shop? I was imagining $300 or so

8/20/2008 3:20:43 PM

The service manual said four hours, so probably 4 x $70.

Of course if it took them 10 hours too, maybe 10 x $70.

I don't know, I haven't actually been to a mechanic in years.

8/20/2008 3:49:55 PM

It appears my cold start issues may be opti-spark related (Oh GDI, I haven't have the car on the road for a full 5 months yet and it's already giving me shit).

I do not look forward to fixing this. I do appreciate Ryan over at RPM trying to figure this shit out. I hope that it's really the Opti and nothing else. He worked 3 hours on it and for the life of him couldn't figure it out. Then it kinda hit him based on previous experience

I shall report later. *le sigh*

8/20/2008 4:59:15 PM

always fun. After I did it in my old b-series crx 2 times, someone told me to remove the intake and wiggle it out that way. Sure enough it worked and only took 10-15 minutes.

8/20/2008 10:59:16 PM

how would moving the intake help get an alternator out.

the intake is over the transmission

8/21/2008 8:40:32 AM

Quote :

"hmmm, sounds like a saturn alternator. you can get the thing off easy enough, but actually pulling it from the car is a different story"

holy crap. i dont know if you guys remember the thread i made like 4 years ago. i did an alt. swap in the parking lot at lake park.. haha came off in like 10 mins. putting it back on... shoooooooot...

8/21/2008 10:13:03 AM

Quote :

"integrating wiring harnesses into valve cover gaskets "

WTF

8/21/2008 11:18:54 AM

yep. on 7.3 powerstroke diesels, the injector wiring harness travels through/is a part of the valve cover gasket. dumb.

8/21/2008 12:02:24 PM

ingenuity!!1

8/21/2008 12:13:30 PM

Quote :

"how would moving the intake help get an alternator out. the intake is over the transmission"

Because there's room to get it to that side of the bay and then you can pull it out from the top if the intake is removed. It's a bit easier and quicker than removing the intake manifold, removing the axle, or any of the other things that I've seen people do or recommend. I can't remember whether I had to remove the oil filter or not but that's still much easier as long as you remember to wait until it drained.


^^ I hope the person that designed that was crushed under a container of cranks. Fucker probably got a promotion though for making it even more difficult to fix.

8/21/2008 8:46:43 PM

i see. you would snake it under neath the intake manifold, past the oil filter, and out.


thats probably an approach i would not have never thought of. good to know

[Edited on August 22, 2008 at 8:15 AM. Reason : lets hope i dont have to try it]

8/22/2008 8:15:22 AM

I don't know about your specific car but I've had easy access to the rear of a transverse six by removing the top engine mount and rotating the engine foreward. I just back my minivan up to the nose and attach a come-a-long to the rear hatch hinge and the other end to the rear of the motor. (mine has a bracket already in place for a hoist)

8/22/2008 12:14:30 PM