Rebuilt Alternator Recommendations?

M

MichaelRS

Joined
Apr 29, 2017
Messages
140
Location
Orange County CA
I have a 2002 Toyota Sienna with shot alternator bearings. Just starting to make sound and the mechanic verified with stethoscope.

Being on disability I need to get the most bang for my buck when it comes to getting a replacement. So...
Recommendations for online store or brand that will get me something decent for a total of about $200?

And by "decent" I mean one that has a reputation for NOT going belly-up in the first year as I save up to get a new one.
I mean, I would have the money way before that, but just as a buffer.
 
I just Googled, "Starter/alternator shops in Orange County, CA", and a bunch came up.

Bring it to one of them for the best price and service. Tag it with the date and your contact info before you go in.
 
BigCahuna said:
Are you going to do the work your self, or have a shop do it?.,,
Click to expand...
Mechanic friend.
About as complicated I get is various ultra simple stuff like fluid & filter and front coil packs coil packs and upoer engine mount replacement.

Anything's that involves A being connected to B being connected to C that might be affected by D I let him handle 😁
 
In my experience, Toyota alternators are expensive.
If you can afford a little downtime, I would check out a local rebuilder and get your's fixed.
There is a great rebuilder in our neck of the woods.

I hate remans, but if ya gotta, get a Denso.
Good luck.
 
I took apart a CS alternator for my saturn. Easy!

The bearings are also stupid easy to change, and likely a standard size like 6203. You measure the dimensions and look them up on a table or just read the numbers on the old one.

The harder part of rebuilding alternators is doing the machining to make the guts round again, or soldering in new diodes. But bearing replacements are easy.
 
tom in boise said:
I just went through this with a 2006 Highlander. In 2016 the alternator failed and I installed a rebuilt from OReilly's. It lasted until this summer and then failed. The diodes in the VR failed.

I should have installed a remanufactured Toyota unit back then. I did install a Toyota unit this time.
Click to expand...
eh, 5 years, not bad, why buy another? it has lifetime warranty. you probably won't still have this vehicle in 5 years!
 
Malo83 said:
I've had good luck with the lifetime rebuilds, OReilly/Kragen, though you pay a little more you'll never have to buy another one if it fails. ;)
Click to expand...
yep or if available buy the ultima select brand new ones for a little more money (not usually a big price difference). those are rock solid. occasional failure sure but far lower than any brand of "reman" i've ever seen.
 
Rockauto Pure Energy #13806, 100 amp 12 month warranty. You will have to ship the core back to get the $60+core - shipping.
Your mechanic will not do that, he needs to work not mail off cores. Leaves you at about $91.00, not including labor & shop fee(s).
Forget the bearing swap, it's as expensive as swapping alternators & they tend to wobble 2 1/2 years later. Reman or NEW, Rockauto. : )
YMMV.
 
MichaelRS said:
I have a 2002 Toyota Sienna with shot alternator bearings. Just starting to make sound and the mechanic verified with stethoscope.

Being on disability I need to get the most bang for my buck when it comes to getting a replacement. So...
Recommendations for online store or brand that will get me something decent for a total of about $200?

And by "decent" I mean one that has a reputation for NOT going belly-up in the first year as I save up to get a new one.
I mean, I would have the money way before that, but just as a buffer.
Click to expand...
Quick cheap and easy, parts about the same quality as Chinese new units, nothing special but functional. Any mechanic can do this in his sleep.

 
Denso
TYC and eBay both failed me
I went through this with my '06 Camry
If there's an optional higher amperage, you could get the upgrade, it's usually a drop in affair
 
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