So I just finished upgrading to the 130A 3g alternator. It's working pretty well. For now I used spade connectors to hook into the existing voltage regulator plug. The spade connectors don't quite fit snugly and the ALT light in the dash works but it's dim. I considered splicing into the wires and junking the old voltage regulator and plug, but I'm hesitant to do so in case there is a need to go back to the old style alternator. I'm not sure why I would ever do so, but I thought I'd get some opinions from all of you.
if you take the regulator off...aren't you just running 12 straight volts through the ignition system(dont know if this is good or bad...i read b4 someone got a bit more power b/c they used an internally regulated alternator)
I'll play the dumb guy wait I some times fit that description. Whats the difference between them. I thought both were regulated. Robert
They are both regulated. The difference between the 1 wire setup and the 3 wire setup is that the 3 wire setup has voltage sensing and indicator light functions that the 1 wire does not support.
Out of curiosity. What sort of circuit protection did you use on the alternator's output? I'm having trouble deciding what to use. I'm leaning towards dual MAXI fuses as they are more affordable than ANL type fuses and holders. They also seem to be easier to come by as they are used in a wider variety of stock applications. You can get a dual fuse holder at your local walmart that is meant to feed two amplifiers. You can connect the 4GA input to the battery and both 8GA outputs to the alternator and use two 60A fuses for 120A protection or two 70A (harder to find) for 140A. Fusible links seem like an outdated technology and there isn't a lot of information available about their capacity other than the standard 4GA less than the wire. In this case however I'm trying to protect the alternator not the wire as the 4GA wire is overkill for this application. I believe the stock wire on the car I pulled this from was either 8GA or 6GA wire.
I pulled my alternator off a 92 Ford Taurus with a 3.8L engine. Looking through parts listings I found that the 130A version was used on the 90-93 Taurus/Sable with the 3.8L, but be careful as it was only used in 93 on the 3.0L which is the more common engine. I also noticed that I looked at over 25 cars (very large salvage yard) before I found one that still had an alternator that still spun freely. These are very popular apparently. I also noted when I pulled off the alternator that the voltage regulator was stamped with the words "heavy duty" which I took as a good sign. EDIT: While I'm not sure I would recommend pulling an alternator from a salvage yard, I was there anyway pulling a door for another car and everything was 50% off for Columbus Day. Since I needed the wiring anyway I figured I'd snag the alternator for $8 and if it didn't work I could use it for the core since my old alternator is actually pretty new. I know it bolted right up on my 302 with a slight adjustment to the lower bracket (where the belt tension is set) as the alternator holes are about an inch further apart. I just loosened the bolt holding the bracket on and pushed it away until the holes lined up. The spacer on the pivot side was the correct size to reuse. I had to use the pivot bolt from the old alternator as the threads were different. The hole in the alternator was a snug fit and I had to file it out a hair at one end, but that was not a big deal. On the tensioner side I used the bolt from the Taurus as the bolt in the old alternator was a different size. I had to add a large washer as the head on that bolt was too small to grip the bracket and maintain tension. I can see no reason whatsoever why it would not work the same on any Maverick engine. I had to fiddle around with the spacers, but the pulley from the old alternator worked just right on my application. I suppose it depends on what accessories you have and which grove on the crank pulley your alternator belt is placed. A side note on the wiring. The wire on the 3g marked "A" is wired directly to the battery side of the starter solenoid in the writeups that I have read. I chose to connect it to the "A" connection on the old voltage regulator connector. I did this because this is the voltage sensing input and it is meant to detect the voltage the accessories are seeing which will be slightly lower than the voltage at the battery, albeit not by much. I figure this would help maintain the proper system voltage a tad bit better.
