leathenwood
1/6/2008 4:05:25 PM
First of all I would like to thank you for the help on my last question. But now I am in sort of a jam. I bought the Haynes book as a guide for changing the alternator, and it says you have to take out the air box, strut mount, radiator, and radiator fan to get to it. What would you recommend?
slowroll
1/6/2008 8:55:35 PM
Replacing alternator on northstar is not an easy or quick repair. If local dealer is a GM Service Plus dealer Alternator will have Lifetime Parts and Labor warranty and I would have them do it. It wont be cheap, but you won't have to pay again or spend the day changing it out. Other shops may offer lifetime warranty parts but not the labor.
kmec
1/26/2008 10:24:11 AM
Repacing the alternator on a 98 Deville is so dead simple that any novice can do it. Those that say it's some sort of big scarey deal & that you have to rip the rad out have never done it before & shouldn't offer advice if they cant offer real advice. The Haynes nonsense does not apply to the 98 Deville.
Quite simply, look on passenger side underneath the car & directly under the alternator you will find a removeable plate. Take the plate off, Undo all the connections to the alternator & drop it down & out the bottom of the car. Note that it is a very tight fit, manipulate the alternator to get it down past the rad. Put it back in the same way. Took me two hours to get it out as I was learning as I went, took 40 minutes to put it back in & running.
Note the biggest problem with these alternators from the 98 Deville (maybe others) is bad bearings because this high amp alternator runs extremely hot to begin with and the GM idiots have it jammed right up against the manifold. When sitting idling on a hot summer day with high load on the alternator you could almost light a cigarette off it.
Don't buy a new one or rebuild, take your old one out to your local Starter/ Alternator rebuilder. 1/10 the price & you get your original GM alt back.
rickyd
1/31/2008 2:22:52 PM
kmec.............. geee, welcome to the Forum, i guess..... we are thankfull for your response, however not once has a member of our Forum ever over rode a master tech like that. hope you know what you are talkin. i myself do not know if the alternator in question is in a Deville, first of all. and the second post is talking Northstar. sometimes the Forum trys to help in a general way, only because we are asked in a general way.......... if we would all go to member introduction, (kmec) to be introduced, and find out what the Forum needs in a post. the Forum will be able to give the right info.
rickyd
on second look i have to assume that the vehicle is a Deville.....
