Alternator Replacement with Pics for 4.4 M62 V8 (rebuilt)
 

My alternator / battery light came on one day while driving.

I was nearby, so I drove to my in-law's house (50 miles from home) and later measured battery voltage while engine was off: 12.6V
Start the truck and the battery voltage DROPPED to 11V, and would not increase as I revved the engine

I left the truck there while I sourced a new alternator.

Dealer list $950.00
Dealer parts guy wholesale 'hook-up': $752
WOW! At those prices, I was now fully prepared to take the thing apart myself or take it an old alternator shop in town and try my luck.

Anyway, some internet searching led me to novastarparts.com They rebuild alternators and starters in bulk for emergency fleet vehicles and others.

Price CANNOT be beat: $171.45 !!!

Had to wait a week for delivery as they said they had a rush of orders for this part.

http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG_9469.jpg

http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG_9470.jpg

Includes alternator o-ring seal
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG_9471.jpg

http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG_9474.jpg

http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG_9475.jpg

http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG_9476.jpg

http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG_9477.jpg

Took tools and part down to truck to fix it, and had to stop to buy a new Torx 45 bit from the auto parts store. ($5)
I forgot my digital camera at home, so I had to use my cell phone camera.

Opened rear hatch, removed spare tire, removed rear suspension leveling air pump, and and disconnected negative terminal of battery.

NOTE: I closed the read hatch when it started to drizzle.
You cannot open the rear hatch without the battery connected!
I had to open the rear door, lower the rear seat backs, lift up the floor from the front, and reconnect the battery from inside the truck.


Removed air filter intake bellmouth and hose.
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00407.jpg

Used a large adjustable wrench to remove fan nut (reverse thread, so Clockwise to loosen)
I used a long screwdriver to brace the bolts to stop the flange from spinning
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00405.jpg

http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00406.jpg

Old alternator, not one or more bolts holding it in is blocked by the tensioner pulley, so I removed it.
You have to use a small screwdriver to pry off the black plastic cover
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00408.jpg

Here is the T-45 torx bit that I bought
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00409.jpg

Tensioner pulley removed
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00410.jpg

Coolant hose to alternator removed, and the coolant draining out.
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00411.jpg

Applied a little pressure to the casing to slip the alternator out of it's housing, and more coolant will spill out.
About a gallon or slightly more was drained out in the process.
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00413.jpg

I placed a piece of cardboard in front of the radiator to prevent damaging the fins.
I had to rotate and fight to get the alternator out past the power steering hose that is right in front of it. (the one that is going right down the middle of this picture from the top)
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00414.jpg

Old and new for comparison:
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00415.jpg

A look inside the water cooled alternator housing. Here is the coolant outlet hole at the bottom
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00417.jpg

and the coolant inlet hole at the top
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00418.jpg

New baby in place. I reused the original battery terminal bolt since it was nicer and had a plastic cover with the BMW logo on it.
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00419.jpg

Troublesome power steering hose on the right in this photo.
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Serpentine belt back in place
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Added coolant back to engine, and made sure air bubbles were all gone after thermostat was open.
Unlocked my instrument cluster to read voltage, and it looks good so far.
http://s356.photobucket.com/albums/o...w/IMG00422.jpg

Cleaned up and drove 50 miles home!

Excellent write up:thumbup: It needs to be kept in the article section.

Thanks for the info its always good to know where to get cheap parts. I was wondering one thing though how do you unlock the instrument cluster to read voltage?

From Qsilver7 on bimmerfest.com:
To UNLOCK the OBC:
You add up the last 5 digits of your car's VIN,
get in car and close the door...turn the ignition to POSITION 1 (position 2 will work but you'll need to fasten your seat belt to free up the display)
press & hold the RIGHT button on the intrument cluster until you see TEST 01
(release button, then)
Continue to press (and release) the right button as the numbers progress upward UNTIL you get to TEST 19
Once you get to TEST 19...enter the sum of the last 5 digits of your VIN by pressing the LEFT button on the instrument cluster until the correct number appears.
To enter or set that number...press the RIGHT button on the instrument cluster.
The instructions above should UNLOCK your OBC (if it was previously LOCKED) and will give you unfettered access to the all 21 (hidden or secret) TESTs of the OBC

The info below gives more detail about each TEST and what some of the screens will look like on your CCD (check control display) on the instrument cluster:
Here's the procedure to unlock the OBC:
Turn ignition to position 1 (position 2 won't work unless you FASTEN YOUR SEATBELT)
Push right button in the instrument cluster and keep it pushed. You will first see "Check Control OK", some seconds later you will see "Test Nr.01"
Push the left button on the instrument cluster to see the car's identification number. Add the 5 digits together and write down that number, you will need it for unlocking all the functions. Example: DG23278 will lead to 2+3+2+7+8 = 22
Push the right button until you see "Test Nr.19"
Push left button until you see the number that is equal to the one you calculated above
Push right button again

Now you will have unrestricted access to Test No.3-21. If you made an error in the procedure mentioned above, Test No.3-21 will only display Lock:ON

Most of the tests are self-explanatory:
Display Car's identification number, HW/SW version, construction date (week/year)
A very beautiful instrument test
Current consumption (liters/hour)
Average consumption (liters/100 km)
Current range
I think this is remaining fuel in tank. Three sets of numbers: A/B/C. And I've noticed A+B=C.
Engine RPM / Coolant Temp (C)
Current Speed (kph)
System voltage at Term. "R" (shows Battery Voltage w/engine NOT running...shows Alternator w/engine running)
Country/Language (US, Spa, Ger, Jap, etc.)
Units am/pm
Average Speed
ETA
Date of Software Mask
Production Diagnosis
(may say OEL TEMP...but numerical digit remains constant regardless of oil temperature)
Display Vehicle Specific Data
Alarm Changeover (cont. vs. intermittent OBC chime)
Lock/Unlock
Correction factor for fuel consumption (nicht ändern!)
Reset all defect codes

This is what you'll see in the CCD:
Several numbers and data
[Instrument Cluster Display Test]
VBR: x,x (liters/hr)
RW-VBR: x,x (liters/100 km)
RW: x (km)
T: (liters)
TMTL: x,x (liters) / KTMP C
V: x (kph)
UB: xx,xx (V)
LAND: 2=USA, 3=I, 4=E, 5=J, 6=F, 7=CDN, 8=AUS/GOLF, 0=D, 1=GB
EINHEIT 1: B3, B4, B5, B6, B7, B8, B9, BA, BB, BC, BD, BE, BF, B0, B1 EINHEIT 2: [similar to above, I didn't want to mess with it]
VANK: xx,x (kph)
ANK:xx:xx
ROM:
DIAG: 01 01 000 E3
OEL TEMP: -48 C
PROM: 00 12, 01 37, 02 18, 03 E6, 04 02, 05 B3, 06 FF, 07 7E
HORN: DTON or [DTON flashing]
LOCK: ON or LOCK: OFF
KVBR: 1000
RESET?


TEST No. 9 is Battery voltage

When you reconnect the battery, the DSC and ABS or BRAKE lights may be on all the time even after the engine is running.

To reset them, drive to the dealer and pay $150 for diagnostic fee
OR
Turn the steering wheel all the way to the left, then all the way to the right and the lights should go out. (I could not believe it when I found out this one 2 yrs ago when I had a dead battery)

yeah those guys at novastAR are legit. i did the same and saved a few hundred dollars. HIGH FIVE!

Thanks so much for the info Dville

do u guys know if the change there website or the just closed for good?

their site says they closed.

That is quite the price. Unfortunately mine failed about 3hrs from home, so I ended up paying some indy (who f'ed other things) almost $700 based on the situation and not having a place to do the work or get the parts. Just and FYI, there are lots of writeups on e38.org BMW 7-series information and links that apply to the X5 4.4-4.8 since its the same/similar M62/N62.

im starting to get a very light quiet grinding noise coming from the front of the car and my mechanic whos also a mate of mine reckons it could be the altenator.

Any one from australia know where i may be able to get an altenator from ?

I'd just hop onto Google and find places that rebuilt alternators.

Just bought one from autohausAZ yesterday.

Decent price, big company, efficient service (already have the RMA packing slip)

It kills me not to buy from Tischer, but some certain parts are unreasonably marked up.

Wow... I have to get ready... these things go out routinely or what?

Yeah just found the same message, anyone know if they changed names?

mine went out last weekend and ya its a pain in the butt when it goes out, seriously i dont see why these alternators are so high in price.. but lucky u, u live in CA
http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...t-weekend.html

Terrific write-up! Thank you.

Had mine replaced at an indie shop, my X had about 101k mls. at the time. All cars have to have the alternator replaced at some point.
The 4.4 alt. is huge, it's a water cooled alternator, I had never seen that in a car before.
Another expensive toy.

I finally got the X back on the road after i replaced the alternator, upper timing gasket and VANO gasket replaced as well... while i was driving back home the battery light kept on coming on and off.. mostly when i had the heat running and turning singles when am turning or taking off from a red light. when i checked the alternator Voltage at the shop befor i left it was reading 14v(green mark).
anyways i thought it would go away, but after i left school this evening i noticed while driving my headlights get brighter and dimmer while am looking straight at the road :yikes:
so when i got home and did a search on how to check the battery voltage. i got the reading from the cluster at 12.2volts while the truck was off.:stickpoke is that the right voltage it should be at? or i have replaced a bad alternator? does anyone had this before? i would appreciate ur feedbacks

Hello there I went to this website and it just directs me to other sites and cant find an alternator for near that price do you have a direct link or can you direct me? thanks

Hey Storm...welcome to the forums. Now, if you'd actually read the entire thread, it's been noted that the alternator site has been closed and a replacement hasn't been found. Maybe you should start searching around and find something, then post it here for others.

I replaced mine in February, I found the best price at NAPA. They have NAPA rebuilt for around 260, Bosch rebuilt around 500. I went with the NAPA rebuilt, obviously the core is the same.

Regulator
 

Hey when I run the engine the computer tells me the voltage is about 10v can this be the regulator in the alternator that needs to be replaced or can it be something else.

Completed the alternator replacement last week and this thread was a great help. Thanks deville. Hardest part was getting the fan off and I know its a reverse thread. Just took time to remove all the stuff out of the way.

So if you have basic mechanical skill you can feel confident you can do this and save a ton of money.

I used a reman alternator from Eagle electric because it was cheap and close by so I could pick it up. Paid $235 and got back $50 for the core so total was $185.

EAGLE ELECTRIC items - Get great deals on ALTERNATORS, STARTERS items on eBay Stores!

Redline....keep us posted on how that alternator does. I"m curious if they've got a solid reputation for rebuilding, or if it's got a limited life.
Thanks!

I will keep everyone posted on the performance and lifespan of this alternator.

Everything is great after 2 months with the rebuilt alternator.

Help I changed the alt with my original rebuilt and the water pump while I was there. Now the engine cranks and sometimes starts but when it does it idles rough with no power and finally cuts off. What can be the problem?? I made sure all hoses and connections are fine.

Check again, clearly you're missing something.

I've been in the same situation today...jump started it twice only to shut off ..battery light on...Voltage with the engine off is at 11.? (dead pixels) ... Anyways towed it home and now time to look for parts...

EDIT: Alternator...

Replaced it today...I paid $300 from CarQuest...took them about 3 hours to bring it from the warehouse which was great ... plenty of time to get the old one out...

Off to bigger things now...Transmission... :bustingup

I LOVE FOLKS LIKE YOU! WHO WANT TO SHARE WITH THE WHOLE COMMUNITY!!! APPRECIATE THAT YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE GETS SOMETHING ON YOUR BEHALF. THANK'S FOR THOSE INFO!!! KEEP IT UP MY MEN!!!

ok guys novastar # has been disconnected?

ok i went to napa as well

You're just now figuring that out? Did you even read the thread from beginning to end before posting?

Just replaced mine last weekend and the original post was helpful. I did purchase the fan tool and wrench since I will be replacing my daughters water pump next weekend. It's worth the money to have the right tools, so much less hassle and faster. Purchased my alt. from Bavauto $410.00 after core return.

I think my Bosch reman was around $300 w/ core exchange from Schucks/O'Reilly's a few years back.

194 from napa + belt 227

The belt was $33 more than the alternator itself? Punctuation is your friend, everywhere in life.

Just did this job, nice write-up.

Here's something that might help also w/ that pain in the ass power steering hose:
1. Remove the 2 mounting bolts for the pwr steering reservoir so the hose moves more.
2. Tie-wrap the pwr steering hose to the radiator mount

When you do this, the alternator comes out and drops right in.

The other thing that can help is removing the 3 upper radiator hose connections except the upper radiator connection- it is tough to remove and does not need to be removed anyway.

Refilling the coolant didn't require bleeding out the air- save yourself the mess and just fill top it back off.

My X went into fail safe mode when the alternator broke. It ran poorly and wouldn't idle until I drove it around my neighborhood for about 15 min., then it returned to normal.

ThunderX

Is there any rebuild DIY for our alternator as is for the 530. I did my homework but I couldn't find anything helpful. Do you guys know if we can get the parts form somewhere. On realoem there is nothing.
Check the links below and see if you can help to put something together like this guys have. My alternator is still ok (206k km) but I am expecting it to fail based on this discussions.

DIY: 1998 528i Bosch Alternator Rebuild for $30! - bimmerfest - BMW Forums

Bosch_repair

Here is what I found but the pics don't work. The guy had the bearing specs in there but since no pics no specs.
http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...oled-unit.html

I found the repair DIY for the alternator. I will try to fix mine this way.

http://www.meeknet.co.uk/E38/Alternator/Index.htm

Does the belt tension have to be adjusted when replacing the alternator?

Alternator
 

I found a nice rebuild alternator for $175. Its done in america by a company called QUALITY-BUILT ! Here is the link, if interested http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/se...art:Alternator)

01 2001 BMW 740iL Alternator - Engine Electrical - Bosch, Pure Energy, USA Industries - PartsGeek

Alternators from $148 and up.

I have removed the alternator twice on my '05 4.4 (N62 engine). One trick I discovered that would turn a 2 hours install job to 20 minutes job is to knock in the bolt hole metal gasket flush with the alternator before install as shown in the picture. Even new alternators have the gasket sticking out. The alternator slips right in with no struggles when the gasket is flush. That gasket bites into the block when you tighten the alternator mounting bolt and is what makes alternator removal such a struggle.

That does not look like a water cooled alternator mounting tab

It's not. He states it is for his N62 which has an air cooled alternator (thankfully).

Regardless, nice tip to know.

I know this is an old thread but wanted to add two "lessons learned"

First, rock auto has re manufactured units at good prices. They are very quick about core deposits, etc.

Second, on the water cooled unit, the bolt circle is evenly spaced so you can install the alternator rotated to the wrong position. At first, it does seem to matter, but the wires can get pressed against the frame rail causing intermittent short and CIL. Rotating the alternator to the correct orientation fixes this. Take a picture or make a mark for yourself before you remove the old one so you get it in right!