Ok my little brother just bought a turbo Z31 and for some reason the alternator wont charge the battery. When we bought the car the owner said that he changed the alternator and battery and it still wont hold a charge to be able to run the car for long periods of time. Any suggestions on what it might be? Would it be a hard job for us to do? Where should i look and what should i look for? Any advice on this would really help! Thanx!

 

So replace it. It's VERY common to buy a bad alternator from auto parts places. That's why you ALWAYS have them test alternators and starters BEFORE making your purchase.

 

Like AZ said it is very common to buy a bad alternator i just had to put one in my 87 300ZX. It is a pretty easy installation if you have a lift, if not its just a pain to do it on the ground. Also i noticed it my connector there was a little bit of corrosion, if you run into that clean out the corrosion and make sure the connector snaps into place correctly, and when u tighten the tension on the belt its always better to have less slack then to tight u can just go back and make adjustments

 

Took me like 30 mins to replace it from the top. Just move the fan shroud, fan, belt, etc, and your there.

 

Download copies of the FSM and Haynes manuals here.

http://www.xenonz31.com/reference.html

There's sections in both about charging systems. Read read read.

 

true it is the first thought to replace it but y spend money not needed check your fuseable link first

 

Have you made any large eletrical changes? (Stereo, amp, subs, iPhone charger, etc.) There's an easy mod. To. Larger Maxima Alternator. Check ZBUMs site.. I think he has the bracket and year of alternator to purchase.