Dual Alternator Swap

[Bad Night]

I have been thinking of adding a second alternator to my truck . I was unable to find anything in the search . I never have any luck there , probably just me . Anyway could anyone point me in the right direction of an article or has anyone done this ? I am very good with automotive electrical so no prob there but just wondering if there is a kit for the alt and belt and brackets or if it needs to be pieced together . I so does anyone have a list of parts . Thanks In advance .

 

[Tail_Gunner]

Seems to me that someone else was considering such a project in the past. To summarize, it was a can of worms and very expensive getting all the parts together.

You may consider just replacing your alternator with a HD unit: LOOK HERE

 

[6.0PSD777]

Any particular reason you need a second alternator?

 

[Bad Night]

I have a stereo system (only for rock and country,like being at the concert) and I plow a lot of big commercial lots . So basically all night long jammin the tunes and running the plow and lights . I have never had a problem and don't know that I need it . Just thought it would be nice insurance . Maybe I will just go with the high output as suggested .

 

[6.0PSD777]

I think you would be fine with an HD one - On my truck i have the 140amp one because of the plow package and works good, the only thing i noticed was when plowing with strobes/radio/heater/headlights and back up flood lights the blower motor dies a little when i angle the plow - Didn't think that was bad with that kind of load Not sure on 7.3's but, I know dual alternators was an option for 6.0's, not sure how the whole setup was mounted, never personally seen one with 2.

 

[bigblack250]

you could probly get the parts off of an ambulance, alot of run dual alts i think

 

[ghoff]

the only thing i noticed was when plowing with strobes/radio/heater/headlights and back up flood lights the blower motor dies a little when i angle the plow

6.0psd777 - Just be careful, the blower motor slowing down does indicate voltage drop, which can be hard on electrical components in the rest of the truck.

Bad Night - I have the dual alt. option on my truck, and it's pretty nice having the redundency. I believe they are each only rated to 105 amp or so, but they do function independently. The PCM cuts out the lower one while the glow plugs are energized. The factory harness on the passenger side fenderwell should have a short pigtail lead that connects to a conector w/ a jumper wire for single alt. applications. The lower alternator field wires would then connect to the factory harness just behind the battery (instead of the jumper plug). There is also a fusable link on the charge wire that goes to the hot side of the starter relay. Sorry about the long winded explination, but the harness should be set up for it already.

I would imagine the bracket and idler pulley, and field wire harness would be a dealer item, unless you happen to come across one in the junk yard. The lower alternator is also not interchangeable with the upper one. Let me know if you need any more info.

Greg

 

[fishyPSD]

Thinking about a new alt myself. Anyone have any experience with these?
MechMan.com - 270 Amp Alternator (40311361-00)

 

[Bad Night]

6.0psd777 - Just be careful, the blower motor slowing down does indicate voltage drop, which can be hard on electrical components in the rest of the truck.

Bad Night - I have the dual alt. option on my truck, and it's pretty nice having the redundency. I believe they are each only rated to 105 amp or so, but they do function independently. The PCM cuts out the lower one while the glow plugs are energized. The factory harness on the passenger side fenderwell should have a short pigtail lead that connects to a conector w/ a jumper wire for single alt. applications. The lower alternator field wires would then connect to the factory harness just behind the battery (instead of the jumper plug). There is also a fusable link on the charge wire that goes to the hot side of the starter relay. Sorry about the long winded explination, but the harness should be set up for it already.

I would imagine the bracket and idler pulley, and field wire harness would be a dealer item, unless you happen to come across one in the junk yard. The lower alternator is also not interchangeable with the upper one. Let me know if you need any more info.

Greg

Thanks for the info . Before I do anything I am going to check this all out .

 

[rblprd]

you want to add the 2nd alt just to have the extra power on tap, you could install one with an external regulator (can get some beastly alternators like this) a friend of mine installed 4 or 5 extras on a Dakota at 1 point for some competitions. each had an external adjustable regulator that he would run up to 20 volts or so during a meet. These were all connected with massive cables to a battery bank in the bed of his truck, not the primary systems for the truck. The factory dual setup is controlled thru the PCM (don't know if all PCM have the code to do this or not) I have thought about it myself (when I finally get the loan numbers right and get the 03 F350 FX4 I am working a deal for.

I will likely just drop a higher output unit in place of the factory unit with an external heavy-duty regulator and worry with a 2nd later if I start doing a lot of winching. Most all lighting I add to my stuff is either LED or HID so it draws less amperage then "normal" aux lighting and likely still in range of even the factory alt, but I like overkill personally.

Good Luck thou