Fitting New Alternator

[mr84darren]

hi, this might sound a bit stupid but i cant get the alternator out of the engine bay. i have disconected everything but it wont fit through any of the gaps. does any know how your suppose to get it out?

thanx darren

[Roytoner]

Is it a n/a or Tubby?

[mr84darren]

its an n/a

[LittleJon]

hi, this might sound a bit stupid but i cant get the alternator out of the engine bay. i have disconected everything but it wont fit through any of the gaps. does any know how your suppose to get it out?

thanx darren

MR2 Mk2 1989 Normally Aspirated these instructions are for a MR2 without a turbo or AC.

Alternator; a never ending story…

Despite the incorrect alternator being provided the first time around and the loss of blood in removing the old one, I have managed to take a few notes on how I removed and replaced the alternator. Apparently the scares will heal eventually…

Firstly although the main alternator bolt can be seen from the wheel hub at the side of the car; the rear suspension leg still restricts the movement on the bolt (it can be dropped to help…) I found it easier to get to the bolt from the underneath the car.

As my Mr2 is so old I could not remove the bolt cleanly and had to drill (and later re-tap the thread) to successfully remove the main bolt. I would not recommend this approach but when you can’t get any grip on the bolt head it’s about all that’s left. I used a 7.7mm metal bit and rethreaded the bracket which has worked ok. Right anyway.

Removing

Remove the belt tension bracket, belt and fixing bolt completely.

Remove the main alternator bolt; this is easier to do from the underside of the car by placing it on axle stands (V. important). You can then get to the bolt and have enough room to work. I removed the alternator through the top of the engine bay on the same side as the alternator bracket this caused significant damage to the alternator but felt really good. It did not work anymore and could have been reconditioned but I managed to get a replacement at £35 + Vat and P&P; Lucky me as the Toyota stealaship wanted an outrageous £370.00 just for the part.

Installing

I knew that I would not be able to get the new alternator in the same way I took the old one out, as I still needed it to work. I came up with this path after considering removing the engine, support brace or trunk. All of which seemed a little excessive at the time. After studying several possible routes I deemed this to be the easiest…Feedback gladly received.

By removing the air intake hoses from the left side of the engine (looking from the rear of the car) and unplugging any cables below the hoses. I found enough room to negotiate the alternator below the top of the engine. I loosened and repositioned the cooling overflow bottle to allow the inch require to get the alternator around the corner of the engine block. After disconnecting the Battery, I removed cables for the ECU and cooling computer (found in the trunk behind the carpet). This allowed enough free movement in the cables to move the alternator into the gap between the engine and trunk. Which is helpful as the alternator could then be moved from the left side of the engine to the right side were it lives. Although this route seemed complex I was happy to get the alternator into position without any force being applied.

The only other alternative I can think of is I would recommend getting a very well paid job and paying for someone else to do it for you.

[ricomr2]

I also did mine like this.

Unbolt it then pull it along the back of the engine.

Once at the other side remove the small fuse box and the expansion tank from there mounts

You can pull it straight up now.

Managed to do it with no major damage to myself either :D