Datsun Restoration Products (JimTyler) Japanese Alternator
Posted: Tue Jul 14, 2020 10:04 pm
Today I installed Datsun Restoration Products Japanese alternator for left hand installation. My original alternator had over 100,000 miles on it and had some diodes replaced once, so just replacing diodes again didn’t seem like a reliable option.
I wanted to retain a stock appearance and wasn’t interested in splicing wires and mounting on the right side. Of course I’m aware of the benefits of less heat from the right hand mount, but I don’t foresee me ever putting enough miles on the car again to wear out the alternator. The rebuilt OEM unit that Jim sells seems reasonably priced, but with trying to maintain two old and expensive to repair Sports Cars on a fixed income I need to pick my battles.
The alternator being reviewed is about $100 cheaper than the rebuilt OEM and looks remarkably similar, except for the back which you can’t see one installed. It is slightly smaller in diameter and about an inch shorter than stock. The pulley is about a quarter inch smaller as well, however my existing belt still worked with about a half inch of adjustment left. The alternator puts out the same 35 watts as the stock one.
The bottom mounting boss is about an inch shorter then stock so Jim includes a spacer to take up the slack. This is the only negative I found, as it’s near impossible to position the alternator and spacer between the mounting brackets and then have room to get your hand down there to install the bolt. My solution to this was to JB weld the spacer to the alternator the day before. Hint, use a SAE bolt which is just a little larger in diameter than the metric mounting bolt and a couple of washers to squeeze the spacer and alternator together. This will help center the spacer and give a better bond. Be careful not to get any weld onto the bolt. I got a tiny bit on mine but it broke loose easily by just putting a wrench on it. The squeezing process put a little weld in the gap around the spacer, so I took a drill bit that just fit through the hole and ran it back and forth a few times to remove the excess. After this it acted like the one piece OEM mount and was very solidly attached. Jim told me that when he installed one he removed the triangle mounting bracket and installed the alternator, spacer, and bracket as one piece. I don’t like removing any unnecessary parts, but some may find this to their liking. Remember I’m installing on a fully built car. If you have the engine out or the radiator out it would be a piece of cake. The hardest part for me was lining up the bottom mount with the brackets, as it’s extremely tight and you can not see it. I used a mirror to line it up with the outside bracket, but getting the threads to start going into the engine was a real bi**h. This also would of been the case with an OEM unit as well. You will need to use the nut off the factory ground strap to ground to one of the studs on the rear. My eyelet for the positive cable was too small, but it had been replaced with a non OEM part earlier. Factory connector may fit, but it would be a good idea to check before you start.
All in all, I am extremely pleased with this product and am happy with my decision.
Another excellent product from Datsunrestorationproducts.com... Jim just keeps knocking them out of the park!
I wanted to retain a stock appearance and wasn’t interested in splicing wires and mounting on the right side. Of course I’m aware of the benefits of less heat from the right hand mount, but I don’t foresee me ever putting enough miles on the car again to wear out the alternator. The rebuilt OEM unit that Jim sells seems reasonably priced, but with trying to maintain two old and expensive to repair Sports Cars on a fixed income I need to pick my battles.
The alternator being reviewed is about $100 cheaper than the rebuilt OEM and looks remarkably similar, except for the back which you can’t see one installed. It is slightly smaller in diameter and about an inch shorter than stock. The pulley is about a quarter inch smaller as well, however my existing belt still worked with about a half inch of adjustment left. The alternator puts out the same 35 watts as the stock one.
The bottom mounting boss is about an inch shorter then stock so Jim includes a spacer to take up the slack. This is the only negative I found, as it’s near impossible to position the alternator and spacer between the mounting brackets and then have room to get your hand down there to install the bolt. My solution to this was to JB weld the spacer to the alternator the day before. Hint, use a SAE bolt which is just a little larger in diameter than the metric mounting bolt and a couple of washers to squeeze the spacer and alternator together. This will help center the spacer and give a better bond. Be careful not to get any weld onto the bolt. I got a tiny bit on mine but it broke loose easily by just putting a wrench on it. The squeezing process put a little weld in the gap around the spacer, so I took a drill bit that just fit through the hole and ran it back and forth a few times to remove the excess. After this it acted like the one piece OEM mount and was very solidly attached. Jim told me that when he installed one he removed the triangle mounting bracket and installed the alternator, spacer, and bracket as one piece. I don’t like removing any unnecessary parts, but some may find this to their liking. Remember I’m installing on a fully built car. If you have the engine out or the radiator out it would be a piece of cake. The hardest part for me was lining up the bottom mount with the brackets, as it’s extremely tight and you can not see it. I used a mirror to line it up with the outside bracket, but getting the threads to start going into the engine was a real bi**h. This also would of been the case with an OEM unit as well. You will need to use the nut off the factory ground strap to ground to one of the studs on the rear. My eyelet for the positive cable was too small, but it had been replaced with a non OEM part earlier. Factory connector may fit, but it would be a good idea to check before you start.
All in all, I am extremely pleased with this product and am happy with my decision.
Another excellent product from Datsunrestorationproducts.com... Jim just keeps knocking them out of the park!
