Alternator question

[fred98050]

1964 s2A petrol. 12Volts.

First time land rover owner.

The PO converted the generator to a Delco 37amps alternator. The alernator needs to be changed and I was wondering, how big of and alternator can I put in my s2a without modifying the wiring harness? I found a 60 amp delco that would fit perfectly but I am concerned about the existing wire guages and ammeter...

Thanks

[scott]

You could d/c the amp meter. It'll eventually fry if ya don't. My 80 amp worked great for a long time. But then the truck sat and both batteries ran low. I started it up and the alt's internal regulator sensed a need for high ampreage (to charge 2 low bats) and the meter gave out in a big puff of smoke

[fred98050]

Thanks Scott.

Would I need to replace my harness if I go from 37A to 63A?

I was also thinking about replacing the ammeter with a voltmeter.

[mongoswede]

I am installing an alternator from a mid 80's Saab 900 (85 amp). The nice thing about these Bosch alternators is that they have a replaceable internal voltage regulator. Wiring one up is pretty simple...just run a heavy battery cable from the back of the alternator to the battery positive terminal...or you could run it to the Positive side of the starter relay as Battery positive must go there too. There is one ground wire on the case that goes to the engine block and another small wire that goes to the dash light and the exciter circuit. The alternator will self induce charging on its own if revved over 3000 rpm..otherwise it goes off the exciter circuit. I pulled the old one off and am trying to decide whether to go back in the original location or mount it up higher on the passenger side.

[I Leak Oil]

You don't need to replace the harness to use a higher amp alternator. You should (do) need to bypass the ammeter. A voltmeter is a good thing to put in. I would also recommend running the power wire from the alt. directly to the battery and not throught the original wiring harness.

You'll probably hear of people running an ammeter without issue, "I've been running it for 75 years and never had a problem......blah blah blah..." it only takes one instance where you overload it, burn it out or worse yet, burn the truck down. The ammeter is wired in series so if it goes you have no power flowing past it, unlike a voltmeter which is wired in parallel.

[scott]

yea what i leak said

[RoverForm]

What a about a generator/regulator combo? My panel light is on and the battery won't hold a charge... How do I know which is bad? Can they be tested or should I just replace?

[scott]

Cool thing about the generator set up is ya don't need a battery. My 1st car was a 63 ford falcon w.o a battery. I never put one in. Just parked on hills or near friends. To test the generator get it running then disconnect the battery. If gen is good you'll notice no difference. This doesnlt work with alts and will actual damage an alt

[RoverForm]

Good point but starting w/o a gen, hill or friends is a pain in the ass no?

[yorker]

Good point but starting w/o a gen, hill or friends is a pain in the ass no?

Not really, the Land Rover's crank handle makes it pretty easy unless you have a diesel.

[scott]

yea the series would be easier cuz you can hand crank it. the falcon was a 3 on the tree. just a little roll, gravity or cursing friends and pop the clutch in 2nd

[Donnie]

1964 s2A petrol. 12Volts.

First time land rover owner.

The PO converted the generator to a Delco 37amps alternator. The alernator needs to be changed and I was wondering, how big of and alternator can I put in my s2a without modifying the wiring harness? I found a 60 amp delco that would fit perfectly but I am concerned about the existing wire guages and ammeter...

Thanks

I Leak oel has it right...........Donnie

[RoverForm]

It's a petrol. Haven't tried using the crank yet.

So just replace the generator?

[albersj51]

I just installed a Delco 12si alternator in my 67. I did as others have said and ran 10 gauge wire from the BAT terminal on the Alternator to the + Battery terminal and then a negative wire to the negative terminal (can never have too many grounds). We then wired it up to the Series voltage regulator per the instructions on LRFAQ and Terri Annes site. Basically, because the Delco 10si or 12si alternator is internally regulated you no longer need yours so you'll splice some wires together and viola, you should be good to go.

Unless you have the Pangolin 4X4 brackets you'll need to fab some of your own. I have a buddy that knows how and took some aircraft grade aluminum and made a temporary bracket (my generator died and needed to get the alternator in). Shortly we're going to custom design some to work better.

Good luck!

[RoverForm]

can someone recommend a good quality moving-coil voltmeter?