mm107

i have to re-place the alternator on my 300zx 1990 n/a 2+2. Do i have to get a 90 alternator 2+2? or would lets say a 93 alternatoer fit? thanks guys! any answers would help!

Z_WRECKER

I think all alternators are the same on all years, I had a 91 n/a and i replaced it with 92 tt alternator. It doesn't matter if your car is a 2+0 or 2+2

My Fairlady Z

Alternators suck to replace, Z, did you do yours from up top or did you go underneath to get the job done?

mm107

WHATS EASIER? DOING IT FROM TOP OR BOTTOM? i got to replace mine this week, so i wanna make this as least painful as possible.

bardabe

bottom. look @ rizz's link page for the write up.

Z_WRECKER

I didn't know you could replace it from the top...... it has that GAY bolt thats like 3ft long

Brewster

Car up on ramps
Disc battery
Remove belly pan
Drain rad
Disc lower rad hose
Remove lower rad shroud
Tuck engine end of rad hose up by rad
Lower sway bar
loosen off alt belt adjuster and move belt out of the way
Remove lower thru bolt
Remove upper thru bolt, nut should fall on floor
Move alt out to disc power and ground leads
Curse and swear and wiggle that thing out of there.
Installation is basically the reverse BUT getting the upper nut on is a beeatch.
I was on my back, right hand behind the crossmember trying to hold the nut and trying, in front of the c-member to turn the bolt .
Finally I took a piece of clear fuel line and whittled it down until I could screw the back of the nut on to it. Then I taped sandpaper on an extension to be able to turn the bolt as I held the nut up to it.
Finally if you hear loud squealing when you start it up tighten the alt belt till the noise stops.
Hope I didn't miss anything
Cheers

My Fairlady Z

perfect, but i didn't drain the anti-freeze, waste of time. Just tuck the hose out of the way..

domsgarage

Ive done this twice. I have a 2+2 93. They say theres a diffrence in them, but I have found no diffrence. You can use one from any year. You can also use the alternator from the early 84-89 z's, for the turbo model only.

Do it from the bottom. Its not hard to do. Takes a half hour.

You need a 17mm for the adjusting bolt, 8mm for the negative, 10mm for the positive, 12mm for the tensioner.

Ive done this twice, like I said. I used the TT becuase its 10 more amps, and I have a hi draining stereo, not a system, just the stereo. Its easy to do. The hardest part is getting off the cables and then squeezing that bitch through the 2 inches of space allotted. I pushed my ac pipes out of the way. Your going to want to move the radiator hose to, which i belive is also a 10mm, if not, its an 8mm. You need an 11mm also, i dont remember what for thou.

Good luck.

My Fairlady Z

lol 30 mins, took me 4 hours man? i guess you must have the mechanical skill, but also I couldn't get the long top bolt to thread in nor come out...

Z_WRECKER

come on fairady...i guess you are just not used to holding big things in your hand, so you couldn't handle the bolt

domsgarage

I hope youre not calling me gay.

The top bolt was the hardest part.

My Fairlady Z

yeah, but it was trying to get it to thread, also it was dark out so i had to try to hold a dam flashlight at the same time..

Brewster

LOL, you didn't read the last part of my instructions. Once I threaded that damn nut on to the fuel line,it was easy to hold in place and took about 60 seconds to get the bolt started from the other side.
Whole job in 30min's, all the Zedder's now know who to get to R/R the alt.
Cheers

WhtFairLadyZ

I prefer to just do it from the top. Whenever mine goes out I remove the radiator..perform a coolant flush. With the radiator outta the way, you can just pull it out from the top with no problem. Another beneift with this way is that you do not need to jack the car up or anything. I prefere to do things standing up, i hate workin on my back. If you ve got an NA, it s worth the extra time and energy to go ahead and upgrade to a TT alternator. The push more amps than the NA units

CanyonCarver

I'll bet the g/f agrees with that too.............. Wait till you get a little older..... you'll be happy to be able to lay down and work on the car. On the Z, I'll jack it up even if I have to work on the top cuz the back and knees can't handle that low stuff. My wife likes to do it from the top, so I'm happy all around. sorry for the off topic $hit, I couldn't resist

WhtFairLadyZ

Yeah i m 18..I have a lil while. I knew someone would say something bout my post. I decided not to add any b/c i wasnt sure if Rizz would get pissed or not. LOL!