whats tools do i need to remove alternator

[robr]

greets, my car is in storage. im visiting that locale today and figured it would be a good time to remove and polish the alternator while the car is off the road. since i'm actually going to a party, i don't want to lug lots of tools around. i have the service manual pages printed out for the alternator removal, but don't know what tools i should bring. anyone familiar enough with this to let me know what to bring? i suppose a socket set, an adjustable wrench, vice grips, and a couple of screw drivers should do the trick?

 

[robr]

FYI, all that was needed was a 10mm, 12mm and 14mm socket. The hardest part was actually just removing the negative battery terminal . Getting the alternator out was very simple, really the shop manual directions weren't even needed (note, I am the world's worst when it comes to working on cars). Tomorrow begins the polishing... the fun part will be putting it back in and trying to get the belt tension correct. Looks like some of the bolts that came out easily might be tricky to get lined up properly going back in, but I'll worry about that some other day.

 

[pt91]

Well you are ahead of me on this DIY project.
Did you finish the polish and get the alt back on?
Curious about the reinstall.

 

[robr]

actually it turns out my alternator has problems, so i'm ordering the polished one from SoS. I had an issue a long while back when i installed an amplifier where the subwoofer wouldn't work. i had narrowed it down to the alternator, battery, or my install. i figured it was me since i had never had any sort of electrical problem before this. so before killing myself on polishing, i decided i might as well take it down to autozone and have it checked out. the diode light kept coming on on the machine, so there we are.

as far as polishing goes, i cant see how anyone can do this with a dremmel and get it down to a smooth finish. i posted my frustrations and problems with doing this in another thread. i certainly managed to get it shiny, but it was a rough metal shiny. still, much better than it looked when i started. so if you're going to do this, i'd say adjust your expectations of the final product. if you want something chrome looking, forget it, buy the SoS one for $250, if you'll settle for rough and shiny, go for it. as far as putting it back in, it looks pretty simple, i just need to guess at the belt tension. ill probably drive it by a shop after i'm done just to have them check the tension.

 

[robr]

well i just received my nice shiny new alternator from cantrell concepts. FORGET doing this yourself, it will never compare. in my case it was a no brainer, i needed a new alternator anyway . i dont know if you can even find a non-polished one for less than the price of a shiny one. i have no idea what im going to do about the throttle body now though, its the last large thing in the engine compartment that isnt shiny!

 

[donwon]

well i just received my nice shiny new alternator from cantrell concepts. FORGET doing this yourself, it will never compare. in my case it was a no brainer, i needed a new alternator anyway . i dont know if you can even find a non-polished one for less than the price of a shiny one. i have no idea what im going to do about the throttle body now though, its the last large thing in the engine compartment that isnt shiny!

You got some pics?

 

[robr]

well right now its just sitting here on my desk. there have been pics of it posted to the board before. once i get it in the car, i'll take some more.

 

[robr]

well.... let me say for starters, it was much easier to get the alternator out than it was to get it in. the part toward the rear barely fits into the crevice.. by barely i mean i needed a rubber mallet (or in this case, a work boot and a hammer) to hit it into place. then i needed a mirror and lots of light to be able to see when the bolt hole in the alternator aligned with the bolt holes on the bracket. i'm making this sound much easier than it was. just to get that one bolt in took me at least 30-40 minutes. after that, it was fairly easy, a little tight getting in the bolt at the bottom front part of the bracket, but with two people, four hands and lots of light we did ok. is it a complex job? not by any means, it's just a pain in the butt when you can clearly see what needs to be done but the parts dont want to cooperate.