Best place to get an alternator?

[sst]

Ok, apparently my belt problem extends to the alternator being shot.. I recall reading posts along tim eago from people who had problems finding good alternators in the US.. Any suggestions on where to pick one up? Thanks..

Son of a .... THATS gonna leave a mark!

[ObiRichKanobi]

Steve:
Check the yellow pages for an armature (sp?) shop. That's the place where they can rebuild things like alternators and starters. There's one here in Ogden that even has parts in stock for the Lucas ACR25s and had turned my around in 2 days or less. I think there's one on EBay right now (not sure, and don't have time to check at work). Either that, or go with the GM conversion.



1980 TR7 Spider, Bosch Jetronics EFI.

[jclay (RIP 2018)]

SST,

Post a photo of the back of yours, I might have one sitting out in the garage.

Have fun, drive fast & safe, be kewl,

jclay

[Rblackadar]

Yeah with all the crap out there that's being passed off as reman. I would suggest getting it professionally done to save you some headaches.

[RAC]

Hi Steve,

If you haven't replaced your alternator, consider the commonly available and inexpensive (around $35 rebuilt) 65Amp Delco 10SI. I lost my Lucas a few weeks ago and was never confident in the Lucas. Now, the voltage gauge responds briskly when I start the engine.

The Delco is not a direct replacement for the Lucas and will need some alterations, however, in my case these were relatively straightforward and took approx. 1 hour to effect. Let me know if you are interested and I will provide the installation mods.

All the best,

Ray

[sst]

Thanks for all the info, guys..

JClay, the car is stranded in my father in law's garage, so no telling when I can get over there to shoot a pic - I looked thru all the pics I have shot already and the alt isn't in any of them.. If I can ever catch him at home, and get over there, I'll shoot one.. thanks JClay..

RAC - that's an interesting idea, and I do recall reading some posts on that conversion a long time ago.. Seems like most mods were in the support brackets, etc.. but can't remember completely.. Yeah if its not too much trouble, please post or email the info - sst@sw.rr.com
Thanks RAC

Rich - I made some calls locally, but nobody in this area rebuilds alts.. its a two horse town, so that doesn't surprise me! Thanks for the idea, tho.. that would be the way to go, if the town would cooperate! Thanks Rich

Haven't ordered anything yet, but certainly don't mind checking out all the different options.. thanks again, everybody..

Son of a .... THATS gonna leave a mark!

[black_1980_tr7]

No brackets needed for getting a late 1990s era GM Saturn alternator.
If you have a junk yard, GM Saturn tended to put their alternator
near the bottom of the cowl panel or (as many call it the fire wall)
in the engine compartment.

This old TR7 thread is how I installed a modern Bosch alternator from a GM Saturn vehicle...mounting points are the same as the Lucas alternator (I think Bosch bough Lucas and is re-using the alternator housing).

http://www.forum.triumphtr7.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=2023

[bmcecosse]

Usually - alternator failure just needs new brushes to get it going again. Worth checking!

[Rblackadar]

If you do go the GM Saturn alt. route, make sure you get the latest model. The ealry one's tended to overheat in a very, very, short time. I replaced 4 on my girl's Saturn in under 2 years. I got one of the reman. one's here in the States from NAPA that has the updated cooling features. 4 years old and going strong.

[sst]

Thanks for all the additional info, guys.. Regarding the alternator, the entire thing is just seized up. I don't know enough about alt's to know WHY its seized, tho.. By seized, I mean it won't rotate at all.. Don't think its just a pully issue, tho.. Father in law is a really good mechanic and after inspecting the alt, he said it was done.. He was also concerned about the water pump, but doesn't yet think it needs to be replaced - that could change, tho, any time as we all know..

Thanks again for the additional info and to JClay for sending me the conversion info..

Son of a .... THATS gonna leave a mark!

[FI Spyder]

Could be the bearings seized. While mine weren't seized them sounded like the timing chain rattling . With alt. out of car you could feel them rumble as you turn them. For $50 I got Japanese ones put in. Put new brushes in while I had it out as I had a set in reserve.

[sst]

Quick question regarding the existing original alternator.. I have looked in the shop manual and the Haynes manual briefly, but couldn't find my answer..

On the back of the Lucas alt is a small rectangular hole with a spade that connects to a wire in the car - this is a small connect - not the main two connects.. The replacement alternators we've looked at don't have this spade - one was set up for it, but the white wire that connects to the spade within the alternator was disconnected and cut too short to splice..

The car is still at my father in law's house so I can't trace the line in the car that connects to that spade.. Anyone know offhand where that wire goes? My guess is that its the feed to the gauge in the dash, but thats a total guess.. since I don't have access to the car I can't trace it down.. Sorry for the continued goofy questions.. and thanks..

Son of a .... THATS gonna leave a mark!

[mb4tim]

mine had a similar setup. That was for the idiot (dash) light.

On the new Saturn alternator I installed, there are 2 wires left, I haven't test the leftover wires to see which I should connect to, yet.

-Tim
http://www.morSpeedPerformance.com

[ObiRichKanobi]

STeve:
Just saw this on ebayhttp://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Triumph-TR7-Alternator_W0QQitemZ270189415099QQcmdZViewItem?hash=item270189415099

1980 TR7 Spider, Bosch Jetronics EFI.

[Urchin]

Go with the Victoria British or Moss rebuilds for ease of replacement. Take it to an Autozone or NAPA that can test the alternator first - that way you won't waste time with an installation of a bad alternator.

If there's a shop near your grandfather's garage, it's an easy fix for them and then you know the job is done right. They ALWAYS test it before they return it to the customer, and it will cost less, too.

Jeff

Jeffrey Aronson
P.O. Box 90
Vinalhaven, ME 04863
USA
'80 TR-7 Spider
'66 Land Rover Series II-A [2]
'66 Corvair Monza