My alternator went out and I was thinking about buying a higher powered one, and maybe a chrome or polished aluminum one for dressing up the engine compartment.l Summit has a bunch that would seem to fit according to their website, Powermaster I believe is the brand. 105 or 140 amp would be good I think. The 105 A is like $185 and the 140amp is like $240 or so.

Is it worth buying the bigger amp one? Anyone have a good experience with a specific one.?

 

To be honest I ran the stock replacement (rebuilt) autozone piece forever and it never flinched. Looked brand new, maybe you could paint the fan on it chrome or something to dress it up. then take the fifty bucks you save and buy some nice chrome valve covers.

 

In 2000, I purchased a 89 Iroc with the 5.7 and full power, the stock alternator failed and I purchased a "rebuilt" one with a lifetime warranty. Well, that one would fail every 3 to 4 months, of course the auto parts store always gave me another replacement free of charge. Finally I decided to get the Powermaster 140 amp from Summit around 2002 when I gave the car to my son, it's still going strong without failure. The Powermaster only had a 1 year replacement warranty. It comes with a new "hot" wire to connect directly to the battery. It is much thicker than the stock to carry the extra amps.

 

You don't need to spend extra money on a higher-amperage alternator if you don't have any electrical accessories installed that would demand the extra current. If you don't have extra lights, fans, stereo equipment, etc., then stock amperage is fine.