Alternators life

zelda4325 · 07-29-2005, 08:51 AM

I just had my alternator replaced after 36,600 miles of course a week or so after the warrenty expired. My question is what is the life expectencie of an alternator. If this is short, could it have been caused by my subwoofer. its only 300 rms, but i have it bumping the whole time in the car. is there aything I could do to extend the life of them.

Matt95GT · 07-29-2005, 09:02 AM

Alternators are one of those parts in a car that break easily/often when aftermarket electronics are present. I'm on #5 or #6 on my 95... they are my nemesis.

Other than removing the stereo, keeping batt terminals clean and using a strong battery (Optima) there isn't much you can do.

freakydeaky · 07-29-2005, 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by zelda4325

I just had my alternator replaced after 36,600 miles of course a week or so after the warrenty expired. My question is what is the life expectencie of an alternator. If this is short, could it have been caused by my subwoofer. its only 300 rms, but i have it bumping the whole time in the car. is there aything I could do to extend the life of them.

a good strong battery is key..... i would say you can expect 2-3 years or approx. 50,000 miles

dj2229 · 07-29-2005, 09:36 AM

My Alternator lasted me 125,000 miles or 6 years

freakydeaky · 07-29-2005, 10:45 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dj2229

My Alternator lasted me 125,000 miles or 6 years

he has alot of mods that is eating up his power though

coupe · 07-29-2005, 10:53 AM

Mine lasted 60K i have no aftermarket electronics other than guages and CFS. Still using my stock original AC delco battery.

Coop · 07-29-2005, 12:19 PM

As already stated electronics put a strain on the charging system, a sub will definately have some bearing on the life expectancy of the alternator.

One word of advice though - DO NOT BUY AN ALTERNATOR AT AUTOZONE!!!!! If you do you may as well just keep a spare cause you'll be replacing it every week.

jeffescortlx · 07-29-2005, 12:20 PM

The one in my 95 died right when I got it at 60k. I had it rebuilt, and it now still fine with 143k. It's had about a 200 Watt RMS amp on it shortly after I got it.
There easy to replace.

Chemboy · 07-29-2005, 12:48 PM

I ran a 300 watt RMS amp on mine for about 2 years. Currently I am not running anything but I still have the factory battery and alternator and the car has 111,000 miles.

Matt95GT · 07-29-2005, 01:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Coop

One word of advice though - DO NOT BUY AN ALTERNATOR AT AUTOZONE!!!!! If you do you may as well just keep a spare cause you'll be replacing it every week.

Agreed... rebuilt alternators in general should be avoided. In other words, Pep Boys is no better. (only 4,000 miles, pop, grrrrrrrr)

AleroME · 07-29-2005, 01:52 PM

Autozone sells new ones now for like 10-20 bucks more than the rebuilt one with lifetime warranty. Mine and my bro alero has them and we got like 60k out of the new duralast aternator .. not the rebuilt ones.

DevilSlayer · 07-29-2005, 05:29 PM

My original alternator died at 75k miles. I got a rebuilt one at pepboys and 13k miles later its still running fine with an Optima Red Top (got it after the alternator died. If this one dies would a MSD high output alternator be a good idea? btw, whats the output of the stock alternator?

MSD alternator at Jegs

Mike Jung · 07-29-2005, 06:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DevilSlayer

...whats the output of the stock alternator?...

105 Amps

07-29-2005, 07:05 PM

My alternator lasted 4 1/2 years.

zelda4325 · 07-29-2005, 08:52 PM

i had no choice but to by a refurb one from autozone because i was stuck 100 miles away from home that was the only one availible

GrandAmGT1996 · 07-29-2005, 09:32 PM

The only thing that I can suggest is going out and buying a capacitor which could possibly help save your alternator. Except anywhere from $90-130. Thats the only other thing that I could think of.

Edit: If you don't know what a capacitor is, its something that stores energy for your system...so when the bass is really hitting it supplies enough power. Oh yeah...do your headlights dim at all when you really have it thumping?

Mike Jung · 07-29-2005, 09:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GrandAmGt1996

The only thing that I can suggest is going out and buying a capacitor which could possibly help save your alternator...

More like, kill your alternator faster.

Dimming lights/low voltage question's....

GrandAmGT1996 · 07-29-2005, 09:47 PM

, yeah that would make sense (after reading your link). My bad...but once you fix the problem and its running good....then consider a cap.

zelda4325 · 07-30-2005, 01:35 AM

the lights were dimming when i had the old alternator but were doing that for a while back.
So now that i got the new alternator and new battery should i get a cap. aif so which one?

coupe · 07-30-2005, 08:33 AM

I have never bought a new alternator in the 6 cars i have owned since i was 16. Everyone one of those cars alternators died on me. I have never had a problem with rebuilds.

07-29-2005, 08:51 AM	#1
zelda4325 GAGT - Member AKA: Kevin Join Date: May 2004 Location: Chicago, IL (Home) Macomb, IL (School) Age: 38 Posts: 144 Vehicle: 2003 Grand Am GT SC/T	Alternators life I just had my alternator replaced after 36,600 miles of course a week or so after the warrenty expired. My question is what is the life expectencie of an alternator. If this is short, could it have been caused by my subwoofer. its only 300 rms, but i have it bumping the whole time in the car. is there aything I could do to extend the life of them. __________________ Alpine MRP-M350, Alpine SWS-1242D, 300 RMS x 1 at 2 Ohms, Red interior lights, Blue gutter guard, Reflective Bright blue GrafxWerks pontiac, grand am, GT, ram air and sct bumper inlays '03 Grand Am SC/T

07-29-2005, 09:02 AM	#2
Matt95GT East Coast OG AKA: Matt Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: South Jersey / Philly area Age: 41 Posts: 1,204 Vehicle: 95 Grand Am GT Coupe	Alternators are one of those parts in a car that break easily/often when aftermarket electronics are present. I'm on #5 or #6 on my 95... they are my nemesis. Other than removing the stereo, keeping batt terminals clean and using a strong battery (Optima) there isn't much you can do. __________________ 95 GT Coupe \| Supercharged 2.3L DOHC \| Mantapart/Isuzu 5-speed manual 90 SE Coupe \| 2.3L HO/HG2 \| MegaSquirt standalone \| 3.94FDR Getrag 5-speed manual swap 2013 Subaru WRX \| RIP 94 GT x2 \| Photo gallery

07-29-2005, 12:19 PM	#7
Coop Orly chicken Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: Felton, Pa Age: 47 Posts: 180 Vehicle: 01 T/A Firehawk #103	As already stated electronics put a strain on the charging system, a sub will definately have some bearing on the life expectancy of the alternator. One word of advice though - DO NOT BUY AN ALTERNATOR AT AUTOZONE!!!!! If you do you may as well just keep a spare cause you'll be replacing it every week. __________________ Muscle Cars Unlimited '01 Grand Am GT '01 T/A Firehawk - 6spd, bilstein, auburn '89 GTA T/A - 305 TPI / T5 '98 Buick Regal GS - L67

07-29-2005, 12:20 PM	#8
jeffescortlx GAGT - Member Join Date: Dec 2003 Location: Minnesota Age: 43 Posts: 52 Vehicle: 95 GT + 93 Escort	The one in my 95 died right when I got it at 60k. I had it rebuilt, and it now still fine with 143k. It's had about a 200 Watt RMS amp on it shortly after I got it. There easy to replace. __________________ Wife: 95 Grand AM GT Me: 93 Escort 2.0 Turbo

07-29-2005, 01:52 PM	#11
AleroME Werd AKA: Richie Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Plano, Tx (dallas) Age: 38 Posts: 676 Vehicle: 2000 Alero GLS	Autozone sells new ones now for like 10-20 bucks more than the rebuilt one with lifetime warranty. Mine and my bro alero has them and we got like 60k out of the new duralast aternator .. not the rebuilt ones. __________________ Richie www.myspace.com/aftermathd.i.ck (remove dots, due to the language filter on the site)

07-29-2005, 09:36 AM	#4
dj2229 GAGT - Newbie Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Hastings, MN Age: 46 Posts: 17 Vehicle: 1999 Grand Am GT	My Alternator lasted me 125,000 miles or 6 years

07-29-2005, 10:53 AM	#6
coupe lick it AKA: Rand Join Date: May 2003 Location: Grand Rapids, Mi Age: 40 Posts: 7,347 Vehicle: 99 GAGT/96 Z71/05 R6	Mine lasted 60K i have no aftermarket electronics other than guages and CFS. Still using my stock original AC delco battery. __________________ CarDomain.com http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm...endID=31690558 he has asserted his dominance over competing males with the loud masculine sound form his exaust system, Females searching for a potential mate will be driven away by weaker exaust systems and attracted to his SLP.

07-29-2005, 12:48 PM	#9
Chemboy GAGT - Newbie AKA: Adam Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Haverhill, MA Age: 41 Posts: 28 Vehicle: 2000 Grand Am SE	I ran a 300 watt RMS amp on mine for about 2 years. Currently I am not running anything but I still have the factory battery and alternator and the car has 111,000 miles.

07-29-2005, 05:29 PM	#12
DevilSlayer Aspiring car freak AKA: Chris Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: Edgewater, Maryland Posts: 147 Vehicle: 1999 Grand AM GT Coupe	My original alternator died at 75k miles. I got a rebuilt one at pepboys and 13k miles later its still running fine with an Optima Red Top (got it after the alternator died. If this one dies would a MSD high output alternator be a good idea? btw, whats the output of the stock alternator? MSD alternator at Jegs __________________ well as cliche as it may sound I'd like to raise another round and if your bottles empty help yourself to mine thank you for your time and heres to life --Roger Clyne "Mekong" Best comic ever

07-29-2005, 07:05 PM	#14
MetaGTP1 Guest Posts: n/a	My alternator lasted 4 1/2 years.

07-29-2005, 08:52 PM	#15
zelda4325 GAGT - Member AKA: Kevin Join Date: May 2004 Location: Chicago, IL (Home) Macomb, IL (School) Age: 38 Posts: 144 Vehicle: 2003 Grand Am GT SC/T	i had no choice but to by a refurb one from autozone because i was stuck 100 miles away from home that was the only one availible __________________ Alpine MRP-M350, Alpine SWS-1242D, 300 RMS x 1 at 2 Ohms, Red interior lights, Blue gutter guard, Reflective Bright blue GrafxWerks pontiac, grand am, GT, ram air and sct bumper inlays '03 Grand Am SC/T

07-30-2005, 01:35 AM	#19
zelda4325 GAGT - Member AKA: Kevin Join Date: May 2004 Location: Chicago, IL (Home) Macomb, IL (School) Age: 38 Posts: 144 Vehicle: 2003 Grand Am GT SC/T	the lights were dimming when i had the old alternator but were doing that for a while back. So now that i got the new alternator and new battery should i get a cap. aif so which one? __________________ Alpine MRP-M350, Alpine SWS-1242D, 300 RMS x 1 at 2 Ohms, Red interior lights, Blue gutter guard, Reflective Bright blue GrafxWerks pontiac, grand am, GT, ram air and sct bumper inlays '03 Grand Am SC/T

07-30-2005, 08:33 AM	#20
coupe lick it AKA: Rand Join Date: May 2003 Location: Grand Rapids, Mi Age: 40 Posts: 7,347 Vehicle: 99 GAGT/96 Z71/05 R6	I have never bought a new alternator in the 6 cars i have owned since i was 16. Everyone one of those cars alternators died on me. I have never had a problem with rebuilds. __________________ CarDomain.com http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm...endID=31690558 he has asserted his dominance over competing males with the loud masculine sound form his exaust system, Females searching for a potential mate will be driven away by weaker exaust systems and attracted to his SLP.

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