broken alternator mounting bolt

[a20soda]

So, not much i think you guys can help me with, but im totally open to suggestions until i can fix it. Drove back down to school today, about a 4 hour drive, and the bolt that mounts my alternator snapped off. i was stranded on an interstate with nothing around me so i wiped down the belt (was pouring rain) and jammed a wood chip in the mounting bracket to hold a bit of tension. it would go in and out of turning the water pump so it would get hot, then go right back down. the alternator doesnt take much to turn so it stayed charging. but man, this sucks, im not suire what to do. im a broke college kid :P anyone have ideas? just stuff for me to think about. gonna take the alternator out and try to grab whats left of the bolt out then go from there :O

[Nio]

well did the bolt just break, or was it the whole holding the bolt in.

Cause you can just snag one from a junk yard. trust me I did. not like they are going to miss a bolt or two

[a20soda]

the bolt snapped of, its still stuck in the alternator :/ im gonna see if i can grab it out tomorrow. is there a good website to find junkyards? im going to Georgia Southern University and its in its own small town. :O

[Nio]

most of the time just google search your town name and put junk yard, auto scrap yard. and see what comes up.

As for the bolt I think most people say to use a drill to get it out. >.> I need to do the same for my distributor cap. :3

[russiankid]

You can just go to Lowes and get a high grade bolt that will fit.

[a20soda]

anyone know the size? just in case i destroy it getting it out

[carotman]

It's the top bolt? Why did it snap?

Bring it to a welder and have him weld a nut where the bolt snapped. This is the only way it's going to get out without damaging the alternator.

Here's how to do it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Asb4RWMvig

The old bolt is a M10X1.25

[Oldblueaccord]

A bolt is tighten by putting tension on the head. If the head popped off the threads should just turn out. Thats the theory.

Hopefully you can just turn it out with a pair of good pliers or if its broke flush you can use a scribe or a small nail and turn it out.

Everything else is going to be messy.


wp

[carotman]

A bolt is tighten by putting tension on the head. If the head popped off the threads should just turn out. Thats the

Usually this bolt snaps because the threads are completely welded from the rust build-up between the aluminum casing and iron bolt.

[russiankid]

Usually this bolt snaps because the threads are completely welded from the rust build-up between the aluminum casing and iron bolt.

In his case, it broke while driving.

[Oldblueaccord]

Usually this bolt snaps because the threads are completely welded from the rust build-up between the aluminum casing and iron bolt.

Yeah see my third statement.

Hopefully being a southern car it just got loose and broke off from vibration or something.


wp

[a20soda]

well it broke half an inch inside the mounting part of the alternator. first off, I FEEL EMPATHY for anyone who has to take that PICE OF SHIZ alternator out of their car. i had to drop the strut a bit and take off the driver-side engine mount, jack up the engine to fit the alternator out so i can work on it on my bench. omg it was a pain in the balls.

once i got it out, the thing was so siezed up, i couldnt turn it with any amount of force. i stripped the handle off a screwdriver, the screw driver separated from its handle lol. so i just drilled it out, annihilated the threads, and put a class 8 nut and bolt in there to hold the top. tight as hell now. plenty of tension, perfect filled up my radiator, im back on the road kids, watch out

was a pain in the ass, hope that people can use this thread next time this happens. upon searching on google i found out this is pretty common.

[carotman]

You can remove the alternator by routing it from the back of the engine through the heater hoses. All you need to do it remove the air cleaner.

Good thing you solved this.

[LX-incredible]

^Yep.

Good thing all the manuals say to drop the drivers suspension... fuckers.

[carotman]

What manuals?

[Pnem3]

I feel your pain. The same thing happened to me on the New Jersey Turnpike at sunset. I was more than 300 miles from home. My alternator wasn't putting out juice so I had to stop and rig something. My tension mounting bolt broke because the nut on the main bolt holding on the alternator (the big one below it) had come off and it couldn't take the strain by itself. I had to replace the nut on the big bolt first and then find a way to hold tension on the alternator. I couldn't fix it right because my tensioner bolt was broken off in the alternator like yours. I finally used a long bolt and nut to rig it as best as I could. I think it took 2 hrs in the dark and all to get going.

After I got home, I pulled the alternator so that I could remove the broken screw. I sprayed some penetration oil on it and I tried to drill a small diameter hole through it so I could stick something in that hole it to help get it out. While drilling the hole, the broken bolt started to turn on it's own and in a short while, I had enough of it exposed to take it out with pliers. I didn't even need to drill the hole much as it turned out.

[LX-incredible]

What manuals?

Chiltons, Hanyes, and Honda service manuals.

[carotman]

The Honda service Manual says that?

I'll have to check hehe. I'll make a quick How-to about this

[LX-incredible]

The Honda service Manual says that?

I'll have to check hehe. I'll make a quick How-to about this

Well, it says to disconnect the driveshaft from the knuckle...

[russiankid]

If you have a carb it is harder to fish out the alternator than an EFI.

[a20soda]

mine is carbed and you CANNOT bring it behind the engine. i tried and tje time spent screwing with that, you could have disconnected the engine mount and jacked it, took off the nuts on the strut, and gotten it out by then. trying to squeeze it somewhere just wastes time and is frustating.

[carotman]

I'll take a video on how it's done (If I can finish my hatch soon).

[Pnem3]

mine is carbed and you CANNOT bring it behind the engine. i tried and tje time spent screwing with that, you could have disconnected the engine mount and jacked it, took off the nuts on the strut, and gotten it out by then. trying to squeeze it somewhere just wastes time and is frustating.

I have a stock 87 carbed and it can be done. Sometimes I take loose the part that blends water into the heater-core since it can be in the way. Take that loose from the firewall and it will let you push the heater hoses farther. It isn't exactly fun, but it can be done.

[carotman]

Yup, that's how I did it

Sure beats taking out the axle.