Should I Do A Quest Alternator Swap?

TheFauxFox

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Location
Huntsville, AL
I'm considering an alternator swap with the addition of my new lights and such going onto my X. I'm being advised by an electrical engineer that I should replace my alternator considering its only an 80amp supply. At the moment, I'm running 4 6" 55-130watt lights, a Pioneer DEH-6300UB and possibly a CB in the future. Should I even worry about doing the swap or should I think about better battery? I know most would suggest a bigger, better battery, but I'm on the fence (fickle).

Thanks :D
 

AaronsX

Suspension Lift
Founding Member
Good question. I ran my cb off my battery ( I don't know if that still deals with the alternator or not) but I'm going to run my 4 small lights up top through a fuse. Sub'd
 

Silver dude

Sliders
Founding Member
I swapped mine then kept the stock one as a spare in case I get the truck stuck in a mud hole and it fouls the alternator.

You can keep your stock one till it blows. If it blows.

Keep a eye on ebay for used alternators. These are from minvans and seem to last forever. I picked two of them up for $35 each.

Stereo beats louder, and the xterra just seems more electrically stable.

Its a great low budget mod with big results.
 

NismoFire

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Location
Smyrna, TN
Good question. I ran my cb off my battery ( I don't know if that still deals with the alternator or not) but I'm going to run my 4 small lights up top through a fuse. Sub'd

The alternator charges the battery. If it produces too few amps, the battery won't charge fully/adequately.

If your alternator can't produce the right amps, battery weakens and eventually dies.
 

Macland

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Yeah. I guess you could run your alternator and battery until they die and then go with the Quest and a better battery.

I would only really worry about it if you're going to do a lot of night wheeling.
 

drbandkgb

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Im still running stock.. (NEW a month ago) The way I see it, IF you plan on running those lights all day you may have a issue.. Even at night your not likely to run them all the time..
On trails you might blind the guy in front of you :) on the Road you might blind on coming traffic.. So Id say your ok.. I ran 4 100 Hellas on the white X and gauged the power.. Never changed
I would look at the Quest upgrade.. They are 120 amp ALTs.. I have seen them on CL for 50 or so dollars.. If you want to get down.. look up a MEAN GREEN ALT. Very high dollar but they are 180 amps..

My biggest issue with spending so much on a ALT is where its located.. They sit right at the bottom of the engine.. Mud just kills these things..
My new ALT I sprayed some silicone in it and will do so when I hit the trails again.. Mud seems to be instant death..
 

granitex

Skid Plates
Founding Member
Location
Columbus OH
For lights it does not matter too much, I took off my roof lights because I never ran them, bumper lights are another thing all together. Where you will see a difference is if you get a winch, I kind of snuck into a quest upgrade by accident. Out wheeling and toasted the stock alt. The parts store did not have the OEM alt in stock, but they did have the Quest soooo quest it was. Changed it rite there in the parking lot.
 

Timrich

Super Duper Moderator
Founding Member
Location
Central FL
Yeah I'd wait till the stock one dies or you find a good deal on a Quest alternator. No need replacing it if it works now. I have the stock one and have 4 lights on the roof and 2 on the bumper, I also have a CB and aftermarket stereo with 2 amps and a sub. I think you'll be fine for now.
 

pro2amendment

Test Drive
Founding Member
you'll know if you need it - maybe the hard way, but you'll know... :) If you have jumper cables with you, you can always get a jump and keep the electronics to a min until you replace with a quest alt... I'm with Dave - How often do people really use the lights?
 

TheFauxFox

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Location
Huntsville, AL
Thanks for the feedback thus far.

After this many miles, I just begin to worry about what is going to go first, and I wouldn't be surprised if the alternator is one of those things. I found a pretty good deal for one last night while talking about the wiring set up for my lights going on here in a week (or month). I don't do a whole lot of night wheeling. For the most part, I'd use the lights on a specific narrow back-road I'd rather not slide off of.
 

CISO1969

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
East Coast
OK no one ever addresses this issue --what about the main fuseable link? It's only 100 amps and this Quest alternator cranks out 120 amps--how come it doesnt blow the fueable link? Is it at risk?

I have a Quest alt to do the swap but wanted to get ananswer first.

CISO
 

Ricel

Wheeling
Founding Member
Location
Rhode Island
Max output is 120, does it put out that much on most days? Lemme throw my amp meter on it tomorrow for results. Quest alt done 4 months ago, and lifetime warenty through autozone. On my second one already and free so far, just make sire you wash most of the mud out before handing it to the kid at the counter.
 

CISO1969

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
East Coast
Thanks dude:) I know guys use that mean green alternator too that supposedly puts out 160 Amps. Guys at club x just kept pointing to people who did the swap without answering the question :) I guess the key would be to see how many amps the fuseable link is on a Quest :)

CISO
 

AbuseTheElderly

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Pearl, MS
On the other forum I asked the same question, but an answer I didn't get. I upgraded a lot of main power wire when I did my Quest alternator swap and just added a 0 gauge run of wire from the (+) terminal of the alternator to the (+) of the battery. As per Soccerbrace's advice, I did not put a fuse on it. Been running it for months and no issues have made themselves known.
 

AbuseTheElderly

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Pearl, MS
Glad to hear it, I noticed a difference with the Quest alternator. I feel much better about my electrical system because that wire was just part of the Big 3 upgrade. After the Big 3, my headlights did not dim nearly as much when my amplifier hits hard and pulls 100 Amps.
 

CISO1969

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
East Coast
Someone should post a "How To" for the big 3 upgrade. I'd like to do that myself. I understand the concept just don't know how to start etc

CISO
 
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AbuseTheElderly

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Pearl, MS
I may end up posting some of my pics if no one else does. This is all you have to do:

1) Battery (+) to alternator (+)
2) Ground Alternator casing to Frame (others may say engine to frame but the Alternator casing is the best ground on the engine)
3) Battery (-) to the Frame

All of the above is in ADDITION to the stock wiring. I did all of mine in 1/0 awg Amplifier power cable. Before I did this I went through 3 Quest alternators in a year (no off-roading, just from stress on the electrical system due to my amplifier pulling as much as 100 amps), afterwards I have not replaced a single Alternator and headlight dim was significantly reduced. I can definitely tell everything is getting sufficient power now and the only weakness I have left is the stupid Walmart battery that goes out every 8 months.

BTW: I did my Big 3 about a year ago.
 

CISO1969

Bought an X
Founding Member
Location
East Coast
Oh. ZFor some reason I thought you replaced existing wires with a heavier gauge. So you are simply adding others . Cool. Pics would be nice indeed.

CISO
 

Ricel

Wheeling
Founding Member
Location
Rhode Island
Cisco, finally get a chace to check my quest, come to find out my meter doesnt do amps.. Go figure.

But got some voltage for you.

Truck at idle: 14.37v
With Headlights: 14.33v
With High Beams: 14.32v
With 50w X 2 lights: 14.29v
With 50w X 2 more lights: 14.24v
With radio on: 14.23v
With full radio volume: 14.20v

All have previous items on.

These are only with the Quest upgrade. Even with everything on the alternator is still charging the batter no problem. Just had a 1000w amp in there with a 12" sub and never saw dimming from the lights.
 

AbuseTheElderly

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Pearl, MS
What brand is your battery, Ricel? I am running a 1500w amp @ 1 ohm and my headlight dim is outrageous even with a 1 farad capacitor. I think it may just be these garbage batteries I keep getting from Walmart though.

Here are some pics of my Big 3, not yet complete in these but you get the idea. (Sorry for the bad quality photos!)

**NOTE**
You should be using split-loom over the wiring, however, the wire that I got has about 1/4" of insulation. I guess that's what I get for buying the cheap stuff.


Here is a picture of my quest alternator with the + going to the battery and the other wire is a ground that goes to the frame.
2011-07-03121456.jpg


Wider shot to give you a better view.
2011-07-03121434.jpg


Grounded to the frame.
2011-07-03121522.jpg


+ Alternator to battery ran along the firewall.
2011-07-03121639.jpg


2011-07-03121700.jpg


My DIY battery distribution blocks before I filled them up with the "Big 3" wires.
2011-06-17181201.jpg


The only wire not shown here is the ground from the frame to the battery.
 

jmnielsen

Need Bigger Tires
Location
Lincoln, NE
The alternator charges the battery. If it produces too few amps, the battery won't charge fully/adequately.

If your alternator can't produce the right amps, battery weakens and eventually dies.

The alternator does not actually charge the battery. I work at interstate batteries and I hear it a lot. It is capable of a tiny bit of charging but mainly you will get just a surface charge, as alternators are more of a 'maintainer' than 'charger'. Here is a scenario for you:
You are sitting there with your stereo running for a while and decide it is time to pack up and head out. Try starting but the battery is dead so someone jumps you. While you are driving you will have no problem, but if you stop and shut off your car and let it sit for a while the surface charge will go away and you will need jumped yet again.
 
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AbuseTheElderly

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Pearl, MS
An alternator "idles" amp-wise when nothing is drawing current. A dead battery, however, will draw current to recharge itself and the alternator will supply it (up to 125 amps if you have a Quest alternator). If the battery is charged then it does not draw current from the alternator, thus "maintaining" the battery. If you get a jump and run it for 20 minutes and it wont start hours later, it is most likely something constantly drawing current or a dead cell in the battery.

This is coming from someone who has learned through many alternators and batteries due to my stereo destroying them. Causing me countless hours troubleshooting.

Sent from my Galaxy S Showcase
 

NismoFire

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Location
Smyrna, TN
The alternator does not actually charge the battery. I work at interstate batteries and I hear it a lot. It is capable of a tiny bit of charging but mainly you will get just a surface charge, as alternators are more of a 'maintainer' than 'charger'. Here is a scenario for you:
You are sitting there with your stereo running for a while and decide it is time to pack up and head out. Try starting but the battery is dead so someone jumps you. While you are driving you will have no problem, but if you stop and shut off your car and let it sit for a while the surface charge will go away and you will need jumped yet again.

Should've specified that in my original post...thanks for adding to it.
 

NismoFire

Titan Swapped / SAS'd
Founding Member
Location
Smyrna, TN
What brand is your battery, Ricel? I am running a 1500w amp @ 1 ohm and my headlight dim is outrageous even with a 1 farad capacitor. I think it may just be these garbage batteries I keep getting from Walmart though.

Here are some pics of my Big 3, not yet complete in these but you get the idea. (Sorry for the bad quality photos!)

**NOTE**
You should be using split-loom over the wiring, however, the wire that I got has about 1/4" of insulation. I guess that's what I get for buying the cheap stuff.


Here is a picture of my quest alternator with the + going to the battery and the other wire is a ground that goes to the frame.
2011-07-03121456.jpg


Wider shot to give you a better view.
2011-07-03121434.jpg


Grounded to the frame.
2011-07-03121522.jpg


+ Alternator to battery ran along the firewall.
2011-07-03121639.jpg


2011-07-03121700.jpg


My DIY battery distribution blocks before I filled them up with the "Big 3" wires.
2011-06-17181201.jpg


The only wire not shown here is the ground from the frame to the battery.


+1 on the crap battery...NEVERSTART should be the name.
 

AbuseTheElderly

<img src="http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u7/ra
Founding Member
Location
Pearl, MS
@AbuseTheElderly, nice power blocks on the battery. What did you use to put those together?

Honestly, those are dual grounding blocks for homes. I just went to Home Depot in the electrical dept (there just a couple bucks each). I bought 4 of them and just bolted 2 to each battery terminal. Though, I did replace the stock terminals with a set from autozone.
 
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