granturissimus

My father was pulling his Maxima into garage when smoke started coming from the side of the engine with the alternator, and a red glow was coming from the alternator area. The brake and battery lights came on, which search on this website said means alternator. He checked voltage on the battery when car was off and it was 12.5v, when turned on, it's at 11.5v. All these signs mean for sure alternator is dead?

1.) He has 1998 Maxima SE, does that mean he needs a 110amp replacement alternator?

2.) Where can he get a good replacement alternator? I heard Nissan remanufactured ones are good, so are Hitachi. Amazon seems to only have Hitachi.

LJay

You can try your luck with a low mileage oem one from eBay. That's where I get moset of my parts. Or you could go to the junkyard & pick one up.

M in KC

You can source an alternator online, at a junkyard, any parts house or a dealer. Price points for any budget. Punch your VIN into a site like Courtsey Nissan for the right part number and possibly the alternators rated output. Depending on your location/access you might be just as well off at a parts house that offers the best warranty for either a remanned or new unit.

theWalkinator

Yup, your alternator fired. Get a reman Bosch or Hitachi alternator, 125 amp. Last year I had mine fried, got a Hitachi reman 125 amp off ebay, works great so far.

Maxima 97 SE

Get only a new oem Nissan alternator as they last the longest and will give you no issues at all. Autozone and other parts store alternators don't tend to last that long a year at most as some are bad out of the box. If you go to a junkyard you can get lucky and get an oem one that some body might have installed new or one that has less mileage. A Nissan alternator will make your car run smooth and like new.

DBear

This is what I put in:
It's been fine for 3 years.

JoshG

Bought a gold standard new alternator/starter 8 months ago and no problems ever since.. From autozone, get in the zone!

Turbobink

iTrader: (2)

I honestly think that a "new" unit from your local parts store should serve you pretty well.

My only qualifier here is that you purchase one that includes a LLT warranty.

reallywildstuff

Replying to this older thread because I'm trying to find the best alternator.

There are no "new" alternators available for a 4th Generation Maxima/i30. Both "Bosch" and "Hitachi"-branded units are re-manufactured - as is the "OEM" Nissan/Infiniti dealer part.

Also - "125 amps" is an option that is either "few and far between" or "unavailable". There are references to "110 amps" being "Standard"...but online sales literature referencing a higher amperage all seems "questionable"

surban1

iTrader: (17)

Not so; Bosch AL2365N 125amp new alternator. I got one ~ 3 month back. I suspect you can get a new hitachi for the right $$.

reallywildstuff

"125 amps" apparently refers to the 1996-1997 spec part (2310M31U02RW) - Bosch AL2365N ($143.55) or AL2365X ($208.12) , Hitachi ALR0020 (most expensive $280)

compared with the "110 amps" on the 1998-1999 spec part (2310M0L706RW) - Bosch AL2389X ($165.46), Hitachi "W01331834092HIT" ($198.39)

All prices are Amazon. Is the above all correct? What are the consequences of putting a 1996-1997 125-amp alternator on a 1998 i30? Both the older and younger models appear to use the same alternator sub-harness (2407640U00)...

Buying a quality part is, like, a scam - man. A fellow member graciously offered his 60k OEM alternator for sale - but I don't want a 20-year old stator/regulator/rectifier, even if it was on the actual showroom floor.

I would love to hear from a 1998-1999 owner who can speak from experience about putting the 125 amp 1996-1997 part on their car.

reallywildstuff

I welcome a link with an offer to buy a "New" Hitachi. Perhaps that is in fact the ALR0020 - although it does NOT say "new" in the Amazon text.

Bosch's corporate website does not reference the "N" variant of the AL2365 - only the "X" (reman). Doesn't that seem weird?

My earlier statement re: "not available" was due to searching specifically for 1998 parts - now that I've expanded to 1996-1997 as well I see that there are in fact slightly more choices.

IF the 125 amp can be used in my 1998 model then the AL2365N probably is the best choice...although the Hitachi ALR0020 has a pretty color green on it.

BUT as far as colors go - the reman Bosch AL2365X is green too. So who knows.

Turbobink

iTrader: (2)

New unit with a LLT at your local Houston parts store ...

http://shop.advanceautoparts.com/p/c...999%7CL3*15587

Not sure why you're consternating over the 125 amp units ... your car calls a 110.

reallywildstuff

That Carquest/AutoZone part has a Core charge - I've been made to believe that means the item is "ReManufactured".

I'm not "consternating" - I'm trying to pin down the facts. So much work is involved in replacing these simple parts, and it pisses me off that the parts quality is so low that I have to repeat a repair 9 months later. Lots of traffic on this board about having to do repairs more than once because "you should have used OEM the first time" - but, again, in this case the alternator for sale at the dealer is in fact ReManufactured, and not a new part.

Other users are suggesting part numbers ("AL2365N") as "the one to get" - this turns out to be the only alternator listed as "new" on Amazon.com - but its 125 amps, and not spec'd for 1998. So are those users incorrect, or do they know something I don't know?

However re: these "new" Bosch AL2365N alternators - if there are new units available, why doesn't Nissan/Infiniti retail them at their dealerships?

reallywildstuff

Your profile says you have a 1996 model - so that AL2365N came up right away for you. 1998 model-year owners don't see that part number on their searches.

What are the technical details re: why did Nissan de-engineer the alternator on the later year cars?

lux97Max

iTrader: (24)

I put a alternator from a 96 into my 98. housing were slightly different. They say There are a difference between the alternators fed spec and cali 110amp and 125 amp. But to me, having both alternators in my car nothing felt different, except i had to hammer where the bolt inserts into the circle washer on the housing not a big deal. In all It will still work. Are you doing the work yourself? Its only held in by 2 bolts. Once you get the 4 bolts off the a/c condenser your pretty much home free.

reallywildstuff

Yes I'm doing the work myself. I put the last one on in a parking lot in the dark - didn't do as awesome a job as I'm planning on doing this time.

lux97Max

iTrader: (24)

Why on earth would you be working on your car in the dark?? Oh ok got cha..

reallywildstuff

Because it was dead in a parking lot a long way from home and I thought it would be better to just fix it there than deal with the towing. That was 9 months ago.

Maximus909

Get the Autozone one, it has a great warranty.

reallywildstuff

I can't tell if you're just trolling me or what but the $$ represented by the AutoZone "Warranty" is somewhat besides the point - its the inconvenience of being stranded/having to put backup car into rotation/having to do the job again that is driving my shopping for highest quality parts.

The word round these parts is AutoZone and OReilly off-the-shelf batteries, alternators, and starters are a waste of money and time. Maybe you've had great luck with AZ and that's fine. I usually go to O'Reilly but their Ultima reman alternator didn't last me a year.

I have now ordered the Bosch AL2365N (96-97, 125 A) - this was the only "new" option available at Amazon. I am hopeful it will fit properly on my '98.

Maximus909

Not really trolling dude. I had my AZ battery on my car for four years going strong and had one on my previous car, replaced it once because my battery messed it up. My alternator came with a test data sheet showing its amperage pulling numbers. Plus if something was to happen there is AZ on every corner.

reallywildstuff

That is fair enough.

Given the information available on this forum and elsewhere I can no longer abide re-manufactured parts for a 20 year old import car that are stocked on a retail shelf at any store.

I've written the above before on this forum - then violated my own edict and tried to sneak a reman part on there (always due to parts availability problems i.e. the dealer is closed on weekends) and EVERY TIME it goes down the same way: I still own the car, and the reman part has failed. I am not going to repeat this mistake _again_.

I've got other things I have to do besides maintain this vehicle. What's the premium I have to pay to get a quality, NEW part, with a pedigree, that will last longer than 9 months? 10%? 30%? On a $200 alternator? Sign me up - it costs more than $60 labor to have that mf thing replaced again. The in-town Dealer price for their POS reman unit is $300.

Low quality parts waste my time. All we have is time my man, and life's too short to keep doing the same repair on the same car...its questionable whether I've got enough time to keep this thing going one quality repair at a time as it is. It's not just the actual time fixing it but the thought that goes into the affair.

Watch - my new Bosch 125-amp will show up DOA now.

DBear

FWIW, this is what I put on my 96. It's been fine for more than 3 years now.

CRBWS6

iTrader: (1)

How did the Bosch turn out so far? Was it actually "new"?

It's water under the bridge now, but if installing a higher amperage unit (125A vs. 110A) was your concern, I can provide a case study from LS1tech.com folks. We have been installing GM "truck" alternators in the 4th gen Camaro/Firebird (F-body) as common practice for 5+ years with great success. The OEM F-body unit is a 110A and the trucks are much higher 145A rating. The benefits:

1. Increased amperage solved issues with dim headlights.
2. Truck alternators are very easily sourced with low mileage from junkyards for about $40.
3. Truck alternators are very robust (250k lifespan is common).
4. Bolts on directly (although only requires only 2 bolts vs. the 3 on an F-body) and pulley is same size.

BTW, I appreciate your thought process and the way you have presented useful info in this thread. Agree with using top notch replacement parts. I love working on cars, but hate doing things more than once.

maxiiiboy

With ~140k miles on my car (2000 SE) and still with the original alternator, I know my alternator will fail before too long, so I did research the subject of alternator replacement at some length (see here: https://maxima.org/forums/5th-genera...placement.html ).

My research did not produce any obvious conclusions (read the above thread). However, if my alternator died today, and if I had to replace it right now, I would replace it with this unit from DB Electrical: https://www.dbelectrical.com/p-11950...a-2000-00.aspx .

Why? I could not find any outright bad references or complaints about this product. It has a 1-year warranty and it is priced very reasonably (about ~82.- + free shipping). It seems a very reasonable bet.

Final note: If you decide to purchase this DB unit, please let us know how it worked out for you!

Ronen Festinger

I'm facing the 4th time replacement of an advance auto parts Carquest alternator. All of them were Dead on arrival, or malfunctioned, or died in a few days. This time I also lost the receipt.

jholley

iTrader: (13)

If you purchased a refurbished alternator then exchange for a new one with a lifetime warranty.

I installed the Autozone DLG13284 alternator 23,000 miles ago with no problems since.

Ronen Festinger

This is a refurbished wiith life time warranty, they replaced it 3 times already.

reallywildstuff

Yes, the Bosch AL2365N was "New", and I am happy with it so far.

reallywildstuff

You should ask for a full refund and then buy a "new" alternator online.

Ronen Festinger

Do you think i'm entitled to a refund instead of replacement?

DennisMik

iTrader: (2)

No, you will not get a refund. They will just keep giving you replacements.

reallywildstuff

He could at least _ask_ for a Refund. The parts they're giving him are bogus - it's reasonable for him to assert that they are not living up to their end of the bargain.

O'Reilly issued me a full refund for the failed Ultima alternator.

Of course he'd have to front the money himself to have a new, different alternator available to install...getting the money back for the "lifetime warranty" POS remanufactured part has to be a separate thing from making the car work.

CRBWS6

iTrader: (1)

You got my hopes up, but 1) looks too good to be true 2) there are several bad reviews out there.

My research suggests remove, rebuild at local alternator shop, reinstall. This is due to unavailability of new (for 5.5) and lack of confidence in high volume remans (even from the dealer).

UPDATE: I ended up having my stock alternator rebuilt locally (Sept 2016) for $180 and it's been good so far. If there are any issues, I will update again.

dwapenyi

iTrader: (3)

You've replaced it 3 times under warranty, and so you lost the receipt during the 4th failure. You should go back to autozone and go hammer time on them. Explain that "You guys know me, my name is in the system......4 replacements of one freaking alternator on warranty for pete's sake!" They might correct you and say its only 3 times, but then, who looks stupid now, you or them?

They know your name is in the system and you have most certainly tried to work with their warranty. If they don't honor you, you can go to small claims court. They don't want that blemish on their record.

KP11520

Ahhhh Houston...... We Don't have a problem!

Thank you reallywildstuff! I ordered the NEW Bosch AL2365N Alternator for my 99 Maxima. Only new one available for earlier Maximas (95 - 97) and you've confirmed (as others intimate with Maximas) that it works fine in 98 & 99's as well! It cost $145 shipped (autoplicity)

The Denso equivalent (highly rated remanufactured) was over $100 more. And not brand new!

Thank you for helping me cut right to the chase! I like efficiency! The way it should always be!

surban1

iTrader: (17)

hey...i'm the guy the gave the heads up about the new bosch al2365n not reallywildstuff! glad it worked out anyhow

KP11520

Thank you for that! But he put the icing on the cake for me and confirmed it installs seamlessly in a 98 and 99 as well. Dropped right in with zero problems!

And that info made the decision a no brainer rather than gambling because of not wanting a remanufacturered. NICE

I'm going to let you two arm wrestle for who gets whatever percentage of the prize cake! LOL

Thanks again!

KP11520

So, the NEW Bosch AL2365N Alternator went in today without a single hitch!

These fit seamlessly in 97 through 99 Maximas and are the only ones available that are new.

My recommendation is as long as these are available, just go with one of these. Denso has a rebuilt for $100 more. Asking around, Denso was the only consistent recommendation from those in the trade for a rebuilt.

And maybe now with the extra 15 amps, I can install a snow plow! LOL