Tremo

Guys, I'm tired of replacing the stock CS130 alternator on my car every couple of years. It either just dies electrically or the bearings fail. So much for the "lifetime" units from the parts stores. It's a PITA when you're far from home and the alternator takes a crap.

What about the beefier aftermarket units? Forget the chrome show car stuff and the 1-wire jobs. I want one that will fit perfectly in the stock location (driver's side), and last a long time, and hook up to the stock wiring. On my car, looking at the front of the alternator, the 2 mounting brackets are at the bottom (6 o'clock) position and at the 10 o'clock position. There is another mounting strut that attaches to the back.

Does Powermaster make an exact replacement? Iceberg? How about those CS130D units? I wouldn't mind going up to a 140 amp unit, if it fits with no hassles.

What say you? Part numbers? Thanks.

Danno

They all make replacements that fit exactly, just state year and model. The chain store units are really poor today, lot's of imported parts. I rebuild mine so rarely do I replace one but I have 2 suggestions. Either get the AC Delco remanufactured unit or take the defective one to a good alt shop and have it overhauled. You can specify what type of parts you want. Most decent shops will be able to offer OE parts for a few bucks more than original. There is a difference with things like the diode package and bearings. I have a friend who worked for a large chain and he told me 50% of all the starters and generators they sold came back in warranty. While AC Delco now outsources for remaufacturing of thier units they adhere to the same quality standards as OE. My friend has an auto/performance shop and he lets people supply thier own parts if they want. It's gotten so bad if they supply a chain store electrical item he stamps the invoice "no labor warranty" to cover his butt. NAPA also has good quality electrical items.

Tremo

Thanks for the reply, Dan. Regarding Napa, I had one of their alternators for my car last a total of 3 months. I was out in the boondocks, at night, miles from anywhere, and the bearings failed. Thank *** for cell phones.

The alternator in the car right now is an Autolite reman unit I bought at Kragen's, lifetime warranty. Let's see how long it goes. When it takes a crap, it it worth taking it to a rebuild shop and having them rebuild the thing with better parts? Like Iceberg 140 amp guts?

Has anyone gotten a CS130D unit to work on their late 3rd gen?

MrDude_1

napa has 3 of them sold under the NAPA name for our cars.

one (the cheapest) is the same POS that all the others sell.

the next is a good reman... i THINK its 3 year free replacement or somthing.. i forget... but its a good alt. i have it in my car right now.



the most pricy is their warrentyed ones... if it dies out in the boonies, they will send a towtruck for you, tow you to the nearest shop, and pay the shop to change your alt with another NAPA one... in otherwords, it comes with a insurance policy.

i think it was $125-135 somthing like that though... but its the best you can buy other then new AC delco.

Danno

Yes, me. I posted an article here about it. I used a core from my daughters 99 Cavalier. She was at school, I ran up and changed it. The D solves all the low rpm charging associated with the earlier versions. I have a 100 amp D and it works better than the the iceberg conversion or the CS 144 at low rpm. The D is wonderful to work on, all the electrical stuff is on the outside. You don't have to crack the case to service anything but the bearings. There are some thing you must know before doing it. PM me if you want help.

Alexcoqui

I bought my chrome Powermaster from Summit & it lasted me about 3 years. Now Im in the process of rebuilding it. It is a 140V & is TPI spesific so it was a perfect fit, real nice & easy to install.
I dont remember the part # but if you call Summit & ask for Powermaster tpi alt., they will find the # out. Oh & they have a few diffrent voltage levels, if you dont need 140V.

FAST RS

My powermaster lasted 3 years

Don 79 TA

i just bought the 170 amp iceberg for her car, 190 including shipping

very clean looking piece
installed it, but didn't get a chance to run the car yet

Tibo

iTrader: (15)

The Powermaster is a nice one. It looks good in the bay and have had no problems with it. The only thing different about it is that the fan on the alternator is like 2cm wider than stock. I do not think that is bad though.