LT1-LT4 Modifications 1993-97 Gen II Small Block V8

overdriving alternator? yes or no?

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Old Nov 2, 2008 | 08:06 AM
  #1  
impaled's Avatar
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Default overdriving alternator? yes or no?

i found a 30% overdrive pulley for the alternator and will be demanding a little bit more power from the alt. once i get my system in.

would that be safe to do considering i will be racing it as well?
or will the alt be toast at 5700 RPM being overdrive and 30%?
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Old Nov 2, 2008 | 01:22 PM
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yeah you will probally toast the alternator bearings quickly if you are revving it high qiute a bit. if you have an underdrive crank pulley than it wouldnt hurt...but wouldnt give you additional amperage either lol..i would say no
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Old Nov 2, 2008 | 03:58 PM
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that is what i thought anyways, thanks for the confirmation.

just looking for a temporary solution.
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Old Nov 2, 2008 | 03:59 PM
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Originally Posted by lt170chevelle
yeah you will probally toast the alternator bearings quickly if you are revving it high qiute a bit. if you have an underdrive crank pulley than it wouldnt hurt...but wouldnt give you additional amperage either lol..i would say no
on second thought... if i got per say a 10-20% underdrive crank pulley and a 30% overdrive alt pulley, do you think it could survive it then?
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Old Nov 2, 2008 | 04:06 PM
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Lets look over the lovely contradictions so far

You want to race, but you're going to add another 100-200lbs with a stereo system. That's logical! >_>

You are looking to get more juice out of the alternator, want it to survive, but plan on working it harder with a system and underdrive pulleys.

So with that said: Take the money you're going to waste on pulleys, along with the money you'd be spending in a short while to replace your fried alternator, and have someone build you an alternator meant for what you're wanting to do.
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Old Nov 2, 2008 | 04:10 PM
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Originally Posted by Formula350
Lets look over the lovely contradictions so far

You want to race, but you're going to add another 100-200lbs with a stereo system. That's logical! >_>

You are looking to get more juice out of the alternator, want it to survive, but plan on working it harder with a system and underdrive pulleys.

So with that said: Take the money you're going to waste on pulleys, along with the money you'd be spending in a short while to replace your fried alternator, and have someone build you an alternator meant for what you're wanting to do.
i totally see your point of the contradiction.

i really dont want to dump another $350 into a HO 240 amp alt, like i did on my old stang (RIP).

the reason i was thinking about pulley swapping was because with that alt i was able to go with a bigger pulley than stock and spin it to 6m rpms without issue.

i wll probably just get a yellow top or two and leave the alt the way it is.

i wont be adding any more than 150 lbs, and the box is going to be located where i took the rear seat out.

plus with the box design i have, it will easily pop out for track use.
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Old Nov 2, 2008 | 04:53 PM
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Just install the 10 speaker setup, since you have a Firebird I have the predecessor to the (presumably) better Monsoon setup, and even with my smaller amp, I love the audio quality. There's plenty of bass available (which I don't even have it turned up on the deck), and more than enough mids and highs to counter cranking up the bass. All in all, it doesn't weigh but probably 40lbs, and uses the factory alternator. I assume the reason for the Monsoon being a bit bigger is from the increase from 120amp alternator in 93 to 140amp in 94+. If I can find the amp plugin for the Monsoon's, I'll be re-wiring my 93's to use it.
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