Pictures
above are representative samples; the looks of a
rebuilt alternator vary. What doesn't vary is the
amount of care and detail that goes into the
"rebuild", "remanufacture" or whatever term you choose
to use. If the stator or rotor show bad or close they
are reconstructed. We are using about the longest
operating and oldest rebuilder in the state; on the
order of 100 years.
An
alternator can be ruined almost as soon as it is
hooked up if there is something wrong with your
charging system or related wiring; or if hooked up
wrong. There is no warranty against this happening!
The rebuilder isn't going to hand us an alternator
that has been shorted or fried in some way or fix one
that has been.
One
of the most neglected items on any old car are the
ground connections; many electrical items in your car
are grounded through the body; your harnesses also
have grounds on the body or frame. There must be a
good ground BETWEEN the body, the frame and the
engine.
Some
cars came originally with the large battery ground
cable connected to the frame. Those cars ALSO had a
large cable grounding the frame to the engine block.
Without this; or without a good, dry, shiny connection
on each end of it; usually the throttle cable tries to
be the entire ground for the starter motor. Fixing ALL
of the miscellaneous grounds should be one of your
first weekend projects. It can prevent many problems
later. Myself I hate electrical problems; mainly
because I've never set aside the time to learn how to
quickly diagose problems. I'd rather yank and replace
an engine than go figure out why when turning on the
flashers one side works and the other side gets
DIMMER! You just CANNOT have too many good ground
connections!
It
is also important to make sure you have a good 1/2
inch "push" on the fan belt between pulleys. These
V-belts just do not need to be that tight to function.
The tighter they are the sooner your water pump and
alternator will be damaged internally. Keep an eye on
alternator attaching bolts as well. They eventually
loosen up; the alternator starts vibrating around and
turns the round mounting holes into oval holes;
rendering the alternator useless as a core; unless you
spend some major money having the case
repaired.
In
addition to the cost of the alternator; there is a
"core" charge which helps ensure people return the old
core so the program can be continued. To be eligible
for refund of core money; the cores must meet the
requirements on the core page.
If
they do; 100% of the core charge is refunded unless it
was paid with a charge card in which case 96% of the
charge is refunded as that is all we
received.
If
your rebuildable old part is sent in with the order,
there is no core charge if the item meets the
requirements on the core page.
Core charges are refundable if we receive an
assembled, complete and rebuildable part back
within 30 days of the date we shipped the
replacement part to you.