Hi all,
It looks as if my 1988 911 targa needs a new alternator. Any idea what type of labor cost I should expect to incur? Is this a very difficult job that should be left to a mechanic? Thanks in advance!
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Hi all,
It looks as if my 1988 911 targa needs a new alternator. Any idea what type of labor cost I should expect to incur? Is this a very difficult job that should be left to a mechanic? Thanks in advance!
It looks as if my 1988 911 targa needs a new alternator. Any idea what type of labor cost I should expect to incur? Is this a very difficult job that should be left to a mechanic? Thanks in advance!
This is time consuming, but not THAT difficult. Disco battery. Remove A/C and fan drive belt. There's little shims in the grooved two-piece pulley. Don't lose them, those are the fan belt adjustment. You may even have to put more or take some out when you replace the belt. There's an allen headed bolt on the cooling housing strap, remove it. This will let you wiggle the fan/alternator assembly loose, but not free. There's a ground strap on top of the case. You may have to lift the shroud a little to get everything moved around.
Then you can rotate the assembly and remove the nuts that hold the air guide (it has vanes on it to direct air over the cylinders) need to slide that down the wires to get it out of your way. Then you can undo the electrical connections at the back of the alternator.
The assembly comes out now, take fan off the alternator on the bench. Any automotive electrical shop can do the repairs.
Suggestion: Do EVERYTHING you need to do to renew the alternator. All brushes, not just the bad one, etc. These alternators last a very very long time. A few dollars now saves you alot of aggravation down the road. When you reinstall, clean the ground thoroughly.
Good time for a new belt too.
angela
Then you can rotate the assembly and remove the nuts that hold the air guide (it has vanes on it to direct air over the cylinders) need to slide that down the wires to get it out of your way. Then you can undo the electrical connections at the back of the alternator.
The assembly comes out now, take fan off the alternator on the bench. Any automotive electrical shop can do the repairs.
Suggestion: Do EVERYTHING you need to do to renew the alternator. All brushes, not just the bad one, etc. These alternators last a very very long time. A few dollars now saves you alot of aggravation down the road. When you reinstall, clean the ground thoroughly.
Good time for a new belt too.
angela
Would I be looking at huge money bringing it to a mechanic?
It is a quote they should be able to give you over the phone accurately. The problem is that most mechanics do not (on porsches...) want to remove a part, have it rebuilt and then put it back in. They want to put a NEW one in... New ones are really expensive.
I do not know how much it costs to have it done, I've always done it myself. Takes me an hour and half or so to remove it, dismantle completely and usually at least two hours to put it back in. That includes making the ground clean etc. But doesn't include me deciding, hey, that fan would look really nice if I cleaned it and painted it... Figure a real mechanic is probably way faster than me. On a 911, this is not outrageously expensive. 2-3 hrs labor plus the alternator refurbishing/replacement costs should cover this.
I would not hesitate to take this to a good VW shop, this is right up their alley, it has no weird tricks and you may get a cheaper labor rate.
angela
I do not know how much it costs to have it done, I've always done it myself. Takes me an hour and half or so to remove it, dismantle completely and usually at least two hours to put it back in. That includes making the ground clean etc. But doesn't include me deciding, hey, that fan would look really nice if I cleaned it and painted it... Figure a real mechanic is probably way faster than me. On a 911, this is not outrageously expensive. 2-3 hrs labor plus the alternator refurbishing/replacement costs should cover this.
I would not hesitate to take this to a good VW shop, this is right up their alley, it has no weird tricks and you may get a cheaper labor rate.
angela
There is a how to in the book"101 project for your 911" pg 61 to 63. auth. Wayne Dempsey. The book is only $30.and a good read if you have a 911.
WD is the owner of Pelican Parts. You should go over to www.pelicanparts.com and search under the tech section bbs. I'm sure some good info has been posted.
If you can do minor auto repair, its not a hard job.
WD is the owner of Pelican Parts. You should go over to www.pelicanparts.com and search under the tech section bbs. I'm sure some good info has been posted.
If you can do minor auto repair, its not a hard job.
Be sure its not a regulator. All things pointed to my having to replace/rebuild the generator/alternator but turned out to just be regulator.
His regulator is integrated to the back of the alternator. They swapped to that somewhere around 82 ish. Just as much fun as an alternator swap. Good idea to have it checked. You'll be really unhappy if you swap it only to find the ground strap is bad.
angela
angela