Making a new alternator fit

[millbrilesabre]

My 02 LeSabre is having alternator problems. I haven't done much testing other than seeing that I'm getting <12v while the car is running, but its the original part with 219k miles on it and I already have a used alternator that I pulled from a junk yard so I was planning to just install that. I think it came from a newer LeSabre but I cant remember for sure now. I grabbed it because the yard was having a 50% off sale and it looked brand new. It is identical to the current alternator in every way except that the stud that the positive wire mounts to is a little bit larger. And I've lost the spacer/sleeve that's supposed to go around that stud between the positive wire terminal and the body of the alternator. The one for my existing alternator doesn't fit.


Just wondering what the best solution would be here? Should I crimp on a larger ring terminal for the positive wire so that it will fit over the larger stud, and then maybe just sandwich it between 2 nuts that fit on that stud?

I could also drill out the existing pieces because they only need to open up a little, but idk if that would reduce their current capacity too much.

Edit - oh and if anyone has any info on when/if the change was made to this version of alternator, please chime in. Maybe it was a certain year or maybe the difference is that this came from a limited and I have a custom? Or maybe I pulled it from a different gm car thinking it would be the same, I don't think I would've done that but cant say for sure now

 

[millbrilesabre]

Just looking on amazon there seem to be two different alternator versions available for this car. One says it is compatible with 02-04 LeSabres, and there is one that is compatible with 04-05 LeSabres. So I'm guessing I pulled my 2nd one from an 05.

I may have to look up the wiring diagrams to be sure the plug is wired the same, to be sure it will work. If its different then I'll just re-pin the plug.
But does anyone happen to already know it is wired the same, by chance?

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

Just looking on amazon there seem to be two different alternator versions available for this car. One says it is compatible with 02-04 LeSabres, and there is one that is compatible with 04-05 LeSabres. So I'm guessing I pulled my 2nd one from an 05.

I may have to look up the wiring diagrams to be sure the plug is wired the same, to be sure it will work. If its different then I'll just re-pin the plug.
But does anyone happen to already know it is wired the same, by chance?

04-05 lesabres came with a Denso (Nippondenso) alternator which was 140 amp output because Delphi went through bankruptcy and could no longer supply AD230 alternators (105amp) for GM at the time.
Otherwise to my knowledge the lesabre could only get the 105amp charging system not the AD237 which was a 125amp option on Park Avenue and other 3800s .

Can you show us a picture of the alternator? Its visually distinct from the one your car had from the OEM and the wiring plug should be the same flat 4 pin oval.
Because the reason for the compatability issue may just be the charging cable, i can check into it for you to find out. But show me please what one or both of them are like. Id prefer both. If the connector fits, its wired the same exact way(fortunately)

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

So 2004 looks to have a mid-year cutoff which makes sense given that delphi went bankrupt and shuttered a large percentage of its factories and workforce at the time, meaning when the cars were made there would have been supply issues probably.


The Mounting is similar. But id need to know which is the kind your car has and which you are trying to put on to best look at the cable difference

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

Yourcharge wire probably looks like this?

This is the one for 2003-2005:



2004 charge wire (it runs to two places) (considered 2003-2005)



Based on what I see here, Id say you can expand the size of the hole on the cable but id still like to see it first. The same cable is sold as a replacement for all years, in addition to the one i showed you above being for 2000-2002 only.

 

[millbrilesabre]

I'll get a picture later but it looks the same as mine, only difference is the size of that stud. They both say delphi.

Weird thing is that when I reinstalled my original alternator, it started working fine again. So that made me think I fixed it just by cleaning the connections. But today it's not working again.

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

I'll get a picture later but it looks the same as mine, only difference is the size of that stud. They both say delphi.

Weird thing is that when I reinstalled my original alternator, it started working fine again. So that made me think I fixed it just by cleaning the connections. But today it's not working again.

It could be a failing alternator, intermittently working. The regulator on the back is probably dying.
If they are both delphi, then you can safely use the junkyard one. if it mounts up fine and has a good bearing and works, then you can safely bore out the wire terminal to get it to fit. however, you should see if you cant find the crush washer kit from harbor freight and use above the cable under the nut. We dont need a crush washer but if you can find one that fits snug or close, the extra space to give a path for energy that is theorretically lost by boring the hole in the wire. To safely increase the size, using a drill bit in a vice grip or a drill but dont turn it electrically, hold it just to prevent turning the chuck when spinning by hand. you want to just shave the inside away its softer metal anyway. If you spin you could damage the wire when it snags

 

[02LTD]

I bought a re-manned Pure Energy alternator from a local parts store because I needed it FAST. For about 98 bucks it works fine.
We’re talking about a 22 year old car. Why would you put something on it that’s also 20 plus years old?
That cheap price just cost you a lot more in time and aggravation. I swapped out my alternator in about 10 minutes. TIME IS MONEY.

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

I bought a re-manned Pure Energy alternator from a local parts store because I needed it FAST. For about 98 bucks it works fine.
We’re talking about a 22 year old car. Why would you put something on it that’s also 20 plus years old?
That cheap price just cost you a lot more in time and aggravation. I swapped out my alternator in about 10 minutes. TIME IS MONEY.

cheap parts potentially be changed more frequently than low mileage OEM

The nice part about these alternators is that while there is things about them that can degrade by getting old, its mostly limited to the grease in the bearings and the electronic part of the rectifier regulator. the one is likely to be immaterial here and the other could mean alternator stops working, but its also much higher quality than whats put out there today.

Id say go for it if its cheap but if it were to have issues I wouldnt have gone to the yard to get that one I would have gotten a new, if possible, alt

 

[02LTD]

I’m guessing that that 20 to 50 buck alternator just cost him more in aggravation than it’s worth. New is obviously better but a good re-manned can be a viable alternative as well.

 

[millbrilesabre]

TY. That's a good idea to use copper washers, I might do that and/or look for the oem hardware next time I'm at a junkyard. I found some random hardware in my bin at home that had the right thread size and worked perfectly to go under the wire terminal... at least for now. I just bored out the oem terminal a tiny bit. Wasn't much hassle at all since I was lucky enough to have the hardware I needed on hand. Only took about half an hour total to swap em out and it's working great now. idk what you even call this weird flanged nut thing, I never used it on the project I originally bought it for but I'm glad I saved it because it worked perfect for this. I just hope its a good enough conductor. It has lots of contact with the threads of the stud, but it isn't touching the body of the alternator like the oem hardware was.

Here's a pic of the 2 side by side. Newer one on the left.

Funny thing is I've been driving around with this thing in my trunk for about 2-3 years, along with some spare coilpacks and icm. Just in case the original fails and leaves me broken down in the middle of nowhere, I thought I was prepared to replace it on the side of the road if I had to. Good thing I didn't need to do that.

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

yup they both look like AD230 alternators, which means they are both 2000-2003 alternators.

Can you show me the output stud closer on the back there, i know you mounted it already but id like to see what that is a bit more. And when mounted, its not near anything like the alternator brace or anything right? I would devise some kind of boot if you plan to use it long term.

 

[millbrilesabre]

yup they both look like AD230 alternators, which means they are both 2000-2003 alternators.

Can you show me the output stud closer on the back there, i know you mounted it already but id like to see what that is a bit more. And when mounted, its not near anything like the alternator brace or anything right? I would devise some kind of boot if you plan to use it long term.

Sure, I realized that was a bad picture after I finished mounting it. just found the name of the thing is a brad hole tee nut. Looks like this https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https://i.redd.it/6aga4zr9ir581.jpg

The oem rubber boot just happened to fit perfectly over it, too
Here it is. I didn't have any standard nuts of the right size on hand but I had an acorn nut. I screwed the tee nut further down too before connecting the rest.


P.S. I know this is not the right way to make electrical connections. Originally I thought any metal could be good enough but after a little research I find that generally steel hardware should not be used to carry current it should only be used for clamping conductors made of copper. However it can carry some current, just not as much. It was hard to find any ratings for current carrying capacity but I found one site that, if I'm interpreting correctly, says an m8 bolt should be good for 150 amps. This setup doesn't seem to be getting hot so it should be fine temporarily at least until I find the oem hardware. Although the oem hardware isn't copper either so idk, maybe I will just be lazy and leave it like this.

 

[millbrilesabre]

I bought a re-manned Pure Energy alternator from a local parts store because I needed it FAST. For about 98 bucks it works fine.
We’re talking about a 22 year old car. Why would you put something on it that’s also 20 plus years old?
That cheap price just cost you a lot more in time and aggravation. I swapped out my alternator in about 10 minutes. TIME IS MONEY.\

I think it was like 15 or 20 bucks, and was so shiny it looked like it had just been installed right before the car was sold to the yard. My car had a lot of miles so I got it.

Although when I pulled it out more recently to install it, it didn't look as new as I originally thought. Idk maybe I was mistaken before. Glad I got it, though.

 

[02LTD]

I think it was like 15 or 20 bucks, and was so shiny it looked like it had just been installed right before the car was sold to the yard. My car had a lot of miles so I got it.

Although when I pulled it out more recently to install it, it didn't look as new as I originally thought. Idk maybe I was mistaken before. Glad I got it, though.

I’m glad that you made it work for you. I was just relating my experience because my bad alternator left me stranded on a very cold winter night and I had to get a tow home.

 

[millbrilesabre]

I’m glad that you made it work for you. I was just relating my experience because my bad alternator left me stranded on a very cold winter night and I had to get a tow home.

That is always a bad night. I've had the same thing happen in a previous car, so that's what gave me the idea to carry spare parts in the trunk of this one. At least if I can get them super cheap or free

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

can you measure voltage drop from your alternator to the underhood fuse box power stud. Just turn your key to on and put it on dc 12v and put one spot on the "stud" youve made at the alternator, and then the other lead on the stud of the fuse panel. Studs/your makeshift pad, not the cable itself. I want to see what kind of voltage drop that wire has, if its not too bad you should be safe

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

also,


Did you put that clamp on that heater hose or did a PO?

 

[millbrilesabre]

Just checked and I've got 0.04v of voltage drop. Measuring directly at the studs themselves and not the terminals or hardware.

Yeah I put that clamp on, because the oem clamps drove me crazy. Later I learned that those are not recommended but its been on there a very long time without any issues

 

[BuickGirlFromMars]

As l

Just checked and I've got 0.04v of voltage drop. Measuring directly at the studs themselves and not the terminals or hardware.

Yeah I put that clamp on, because the oem clamps drove me crazy. Later I learned that those are not recommended but its been on there a very long time without any issues

As long as it’s still working you should be fine just realize that if you ever need to put ll it off they may not reseal especially if you don’t orient them the same. It just depends on the amount they “dig” into the hose. On smaller diameter the effect is less than the large ones.
The voltage drop ain’t great but it’s okay for what you’re doing