Hi Guys, I need to replace my alternator I was looking for posts that have tricks on how to replace this there doesnt seem to be a whole lot of room.
Appreciate the advice
Thanks
Appreciate the advice
Thanks
1993 FZJ80 Alternator Replacement (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Tam Skoosh
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Make things easy for yourself and remove the battery and battery box. Tons of room now. Don't forget to loosen the lock bolt on the belt adjuster and Don't forget to tighten it when the new alternator is in (it will chaff on the drive belt otherwise). All in it should take about 40 mins to 1 hour.
- Thread starter
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Thanks, Irish Reiver doesn't sound like a tough job, I had to replace the radiator last year now that was a fun project in Texas heat and humidity.
Looking at more heat and humidity doing this job how come this stuff breaks during summer? lol
Looking at more heat and humidity doing this job how come this stuff breaks during summer? lol
lp2k
Had a couple of drinks.. saw a couple of things
I will say it, you have the belts off so might as well hit the water pump and the fan clutch.
Replace the idler pully while your in there too if you take all of the belts off.
I don't mean to hijack this post, but i found it doing a search here. and I think i'm going to have to replace my alternator too. The red light above the alternator gauge came on a couple of days ago, then the ABS light came on a little while later. I checked my battery when I got home and it was below 25% charge. I just replaced my battery a few months ago with a Optima yellow top because my old battery kept going dead. I thought i just wasn't driving it enough to keep it charged up, since i don't drive my '97 every day and only live a few miles from work, so i normally only drive it for about 15-20 minutes at a time. Now, I'm thinking the alternator was failing this whole time.
So, the last post about replacing the head gasket "while you're in there" definitely seems like sarcasm, but are you guys seriously saying that we should replace the water pump, idler pulley and fan clutch "while you're in there" ? or is all that some kind of running joke because some people say to do that even if there doesn't seem to be a problem with those things ?
So, the last post about replacing the head gasket "while you're in there" definitely seems like sarcasm, but are you guys seriously saying that we should replace the water pump, idler pulley and fan clutch "while you're in there" ? or is all that some kind of running joke because some people say to do that even if there doesn't seem to be a problem with those things ?
They are worth a cursory inspection but nothing more. You are not really in a true "while you're in there" scenario because all you will remove for access is the battery box and pulley belts. If your idler pulley is noisy then remove it or replace it. If your belts are old then replace them.
Other than that its a 45 min to 1 hour job.
Other than that its a 45 min to 1 hour job.
Thanks for the info. That's kinda what I was thinking, but didn't know if people actually did that kind of thing as PM. I already bought all new belts a while back when i bought new plugs and wires and stuff to do a tune up and some other PM that i haven't had time to get around to doing.
this will help when u adjust the belts..
Thanks. I'll take all the help i can get. I still consider myself an amateur wrencher and haven't replaced one of these on my 80 before. I replaced the one on my FJ40 years ago, but there's a lot more room to work with under the hood of it. I just remember my biggest concern there was wondering if i was getting the belt tight enough or too tight.
For many of us, the Cruisers come with an unknown history. If you have one major part off, it makes surrounding components easier to access and remove. If you don't know how old the water pump, fan clutch or belts are, might as well do them. Then it's a slippery slope....fan clutch is off, might as well replace radiator. Radiator is out, might as well do the heater valve. Heater valve is off, might as well clean the throttle body and intake manifold. Upper manifold is off, might as well do the injectors. Injectors are out, might as well do the PHH, all the others hoses, the knock sensors and bypass the rear heat.....then you're only about 15 minutes away from just doing the head gasket. Which, incidentally, is only 4 steps from an LS swap.
I get what you're saying, and it does make sense to take a look at other things and possible go ahead and replace them "while you're in there", with everything taken apart. I bought my '97 in 2014 after a teenage girl on her phone "totaled" my '93. The guy I bought it from had just had the radiator and some other stuff replaced by a Toyota stealership, and he gave me all the paperwork showing what work had been done. I changed out all the diff/transfer gear oil, and did tranny fluid exchange. I had to have a mechanic replace the fan clutch when i was on a trip out of town a few months after i bought it. But, I have no idea if the alternator or water pump have ever been replaced on it, so maybe i should just replace the water pump while i'm doing this. I'm hesitant though because the whole, "one thing leads to another" scenario is the reason why my FJ40 isn't currently running, so i'm reluctant to start taking apart a bunch of stuff that doesn't appear to be broken right now.
At least the water pump and belts are an easy and quick replacement along with the alternator. Add the idler pulley, A/C pulley and oil pump cover without too much stress or time.
ok, so after removing the battery and box, and removing the power steering reservoir bolts so i could move it out of the way some, I finally got the alternator removed without too much trouble. Now, just as I feared, and considering how things usually go for me, I'm trying to figure out how many other problems I now have to think about now that I've gotten a good look at the alternator and the area around it. It's covered in oil and grime, and I'm wondering, can the oil and crap be what caused it to fail? or at least part of it? I knew that my engine has some leaks, but i really didn't know the alternator was caked up and covered like this.
Some photos of the area around the alternator, what looks like maybe oil is leaking through the distributor? , and unfortunately i broke the clip on the plug when trying to unplug it. Any ideas about what is leaking and how hard it would be to fix? If the leaking oil could ruin the new alternator, i don't want to put it in without fixing it. I guess it's possible that a small leak has just accumulated all that crap over the years, but some of it looks pretty wet. Am I going to have to replace the plug with the broken clip or will it still stay in place?
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There are a few things there that are prone to leaking but i suspect your main culprit is the O-ring on the distributor. Pretty straightforward job.
1) Find TDC for #1 cylinder on compression stroke
2) Pop off the distributor cap and take photo of where the rotor arm is pointing (should be around 11oclock)
3)Undo 12mm bolt holding distributor in place.
4) pull distributor, replace o-ring, align matchmarks on dizzy and replace. Make sure it matchs your photo.
5)check timing with a strobe
6) Drink
1) Find TDC for #1 cylinder on compression stroke
2) Pop off the distributor cap and take photo of where the rotor arm is pointing (should be around 11oclock)
3)Undo 12mm bolt holding distributor in place.
4) pull distributor, replace o-ring, align matchmarks on dizzy and replace. Make sure it matchs your photo.
5)check timing with a strobe
6) Drink
I will look into that, but not sure that I'm competent enough to pull the distributor. I'll look for some tutorial/guide stuff on it and see if I feel like I could do it. Years ago, when i was replacing a bunch of parts on my FJ40, I replaced the distributor on it, and tried to follow the instructions and be very careful , and STILL did it wrong. LOLThere are a few things there that are prone to leaking but i suspect your main culprit is the O-ring on the distributor. Pretty straightforward job.
1) Find TDC for #1 cylinder on compression stroke
2) Pop off the distributor cap and take photo of where the rotor arm is pointing (should be around 11oclock)
3)Undo 12mm bolt holding distributor in place.
4) pull distributor, replace o-ring, align matchmarks on dizzy and replace. Make sure it matchs your photo.
5)check timing with a strobe
6) Drink
