New alternator and belt too long

[masurati]

I have 2007 4.8 x5. I installed a new alternator from autozone.
but now my original belt is too long. New alternator has secondary
Pulley at slightly different place then the original one.
Did auto zone sell me a wrong part? Will buying a shorter belt belp?
Anybody has same thing happen? I really dont feel like taking out the
Alternator again since it was a major pita.
Thanks.

[jfoj]

Pictures??

Secondary Pulley??

Are you sure you have the belt routing correct?

I recall when I replaced my water pump, the belt routing was not obvious and I had to find a diagram to get it correct.

http://www.pelicanparts.com/techarti..._med/pic10.jpg

[masurati]

When i look on ebay in pictures i see
That some akternators are like my original one.
Secondary pulley is covering the mounting bolt, and some
Are like new ones. They should both fit.
My belt routing is correct i triple checked.

[jfoj]

I guess I have to do all the work for you????

Alternator 180 Amp 3 0L N52 7560985 BMW x5 E70 128i 328i 528i x3 2007 13 | eBay

This appears to be a 3.0l alternator by the description, but I have no idea if the secondary pulley can be removed and/or if the alternator mounting points are the same as the 4.8l.

But what I see on this ebay listing is the alternator has a one way over running clutch (or aka as a AOP) as well which is not what my 4.8l has. The AOP clutch may be a different size and different location.

My recommendation is DO NOT get an alternator from the local auto parts store.

[masurati]

Here is the picture of the new one and old one. secondary pulley screws on the alternator. Why is autozone selling this as a good fit for 2007 x5 4.8 whern it's not? I see on ebay and web many people sell similar alternators as autozone and they claim it fits 2007 4.8i. Why are they saying it fits when secondary pulley location is different? I spent 5 hours yesterday removing the old one, putting new one in only to figure out that my original belt is too long now.

[jfoj]

I still say the belt routing is wrong. I see from the picture the alternators are not the same. You cannot really use the replacement alternator because the idler pulley does not mount in the same place.

I believe there may be some optional alternator configurations on the V8 engines, but I am not 100% sure. I see there are 2 alternator part numbers listed, a 180 Amp and a 220 Amp. Seems that vehicles with 4 zone climate control have the 220 Amp alternator. Not sure if the mount of the idler is different between these 2 alternators.

BMW also has some cases where they use Bosch or Valeo alternators and they are not always the same between the vendors. RealOEM leads me to believe these should be Valeo, but you never know with BMW.

There may be a difference year to year as well, the diagram I posted is how my set up is configured.

The oil cooler option may also indicate the alternator position, my X5 has the oil cooler option.

[jfoj]

This looks like the alternator you have?

Amazon.com: Valeo 439602 Alternator: Automotive

[masurati]

Yes. Thats it. Mine has four station climate control and i got
220 amp one. I think one from autozone is for older 4.4 engines.

[euge]

I am in the process of swapping out my alternator also (08 x5 with 4 zone climate) did you follow a guide on how to remove it?

[jfoj]

Not the E70 X5, but may be useful or give you some ideas - BMW - The Infamous Alternator Bracket Oil Leak on the E65 BMW 7-Series - Pelican Parts Technical Article

Might check to see if there is an oil leak around the alternator bracket while you are under there. If the car has an oil cooler the job is much better/easier, if you do not have an oil cooler, well read carefully, I think there is an issue with access to a bolt or to get the bracket out of the way.