Alternator keeps going out

[OSUCowboy27]

1990 Honda Civic 1.5L auto, Alternator keeps going out every 1.5-2 years. It is the most expensive one from AutoZone so it has lifetime warranty. Just kind of a hassle to change it that often. Any suggestions?

[avmx]

What is the vehicle equipped with??

Air cond., Stereo with amps and subs, etc.??

If you have too much of an electrical load on the alternator you're going to kill the ALT prematurely.

You might have to upgrade to a more powerful ALT. If you have a 70 AMP ALT, ,try a 100 Amp ALT.

[ponchonutty]

Well the main problem is you are getting them from Autozone. If everything else checks out OK and you are not abusing the system with huge amps, you should never have to replace one more than once.

[KrisSmithRocks]

well i'm not sure what kind of rep that autozone has with electronics but i work at a shop and we have has such bad luck with shucks electronics we don't even call them anymore so maybe somone with more autozone experience can chime in but i know that there are deffinatly differences in quality between parts houses.

[Don Joseph]

alternator keeps going out on my 1995 mercury mystique any help would be appreciated

[VTISC007]

This is a simple one...

AutoZone, Kragen, Pep Boys, O'Rileys etc. etc.....

The reason why they offer a Lifetime warranty is because they know it will go bad.
One guy, who worked at AutoZone, told me that they send all the cores (alternators, distributors and what ever else) to someone who charges them a small fee to "rebuild" them. The person who is rebuilding them is only concerned with "rebuilding" as many as he can, as fast as he can. This process puts more money into the pocket of the person doing the rebuilding. You will not get a quality rebuilt product that way.

You need to do your homework on these things.

I've had the same problems with AutoZone alternators and distributors. Now I opt for rebuilt products from the dealer. They are more expensive, however, their standards are much higher. Often times they rebuild them like as if they were new,,,,,the only thing that is old is the casing. Usually, local mechanics have their own parts guys that they get good parts from, but they usually won't give up their secrets (that's what keeps them in business). I had to replace an alternator four times until I got a good one.

I hope this helps.