[joparrett]

I'm helpin my buddy change his alternator tonight. We were wondering the basic steps... and about belt tensioning and stuff... thanks

[nolife]

Originally Posted by joparrett I'm helpin my buddy change his alternator tonight. We were wondering the basic steps... and about belt tensioning and stuff... thanks

As a bare minimum...
On a fox body Mustang? Remove the belt by either sticking a bar or the stock tire iron between the tensioner and the tensioner mount and pull it up to loosen it or attach the right sized socket to it and turn, hold it there and slip the belt off. Remove the two electrical connectors and the two bolts holding the alternator in. Install in the reverse order. Belt will adjust back automatically. It is a 10 minute job.

Things to consider...
Technically... You should always replace the pigtail connector (the connector with two heavy gauge wires). That pigtail is a bad design by Ford for these years and fails often. The new pigtail should be attached to the wiring with a connector kit specifically for that job or at least solder the connections, cheap crimp type connectors from Walmart or twisting the wires and using electrical tape may work short term but it WILL BE a fire hazard eventually. Again, it is your call but I would spend the few extra bucks and time and do it right. If you don't have good wiring skillz, you may be better off leaving it alone but at least look at it and make sure it is not corroded and/or burned. Most auto parts stores have that pigtail in the the wiring/light bulb section and it looks something like this.


Another note, make sure the replacement alternator itself is "clocked" correctly. Basically, compare the old and new side by side and make sure the mounting holes and electrical connectors are in the same place, they may be 120 degrees off either direction. The reason is some Fords use the that same alternator in different orientations and the auto parts store may use the same part number for all of them. You can change it yourself but you risk damaging it so I would take it back and get a different one.

[angermgt]

good luck !