Rep Power: 0

Hello Everyone,

Recently I posted a few days ago about how my car wouldnt start. This was solved with replacing the starter and new spark plugs. However, when it ran, smoke came from the belts near the alternator. after removal and inspection, the alternator belt was chewed up and the leftover residue is left on the alternator pulley. I concluded while the pulley does have some free spin, there is a rub sound every set interval I spin the pulley. So, either I replace the bearing inside which seems like a pain in the ***, or I replace the alternator. The vehicle (2001 Honda Civic Ex 1.7 5spd) already has 160k miles, so I figure I minds will replace the whole thing. Question is, what brand of alternator would you recommend as I am not finding any with good reviews. I seen the Duralast Gold has 2, 5 star reviews on Autozone but I have read elsewhere people have issues with them. What would you suggest? Should I replace just the bearing? Even so, I would still like a recommendation on a Alternator Brand that I can trust with easy install and fitment. Thank you.

 
Rep Power: 210

Buy a used Honda genuine (oem) alternator from a local junkyard or this site: http://www.car-part.com/
I can't remember if 7th gens employ an alternator/belt tensioner pulley (like the 6th gen does) If it does have a tensioner pully that could be the source of the noise and is sold as a complete unit so no need to replace bearings.

 
Rep Power: 518

You're worried about the alternator making a squeak noise? That's not uncommon.

I'd be a lot more concerned about making sure it actually generates electricity and charges the battery. With a correctly installed belt that is adjusted tight enough to work as designed.


Bad alternator? Maybe. But your criteria as written doesn't support any diagnosis yet.
This part of your description only tells me the belt may not have been adjusted correctly (not tight enough). That doesn't necessarily condemn the alternator unless there's a lot more to the story you haven't written out here.

 
Rep Power: 102

i buy autozone alternators because they have a lifetime warranty and there's an autozone on every corner.. i would spend 3x more for one with american made components but they don't make them here. for all alternators, the case is from china, the armature from brazil, etc.. I called P.A. Performance the guy was amazingly knowledgeable.

anyways..

i have never had an issue with one from autozone. people that burn them out are likely the ones that are too dumb to read the warning zip tied to the case that says to charge the battery before using it, so instead of a break in period they work it harder than it should ever work right from the start, or they found another dumb way to ruin them, such as killing the bearings by over-tensioning the belt.

i have never had one fail. the last autozone alternator i returned was due to a squeak. the guy went to test it and i said "it charges fine, it just squeaks and drives me nuts" so in order to get it warrantied he tested it with the plug disconnected so the necessary paperwork could be written and my warranty accepted. it's one of the few chain-store parts i'm happy to use. if you're the kind of guy that changes perfectly good parts because they squeak, autozone is the place for you.

 
Rep Power: 0

Thanks everyone for the replies. I replaced the alternator and now my car runs smooth. I did let it run for a few minutes so it should be fine. I was concerned that I may have overtightened but that has not been the case. It was infact the bearing inside the alternator that was worn, so replacing the alternator was a good choice. The alternator, which I bought from Autozone, the Duralast Gold, was a very tight fit. I was however, able to get it in with a hammer and 2 x 4 so. Hopefully I will enjoy these fixes long term.