How long do Alternators last?

My old 80 with a 1fz-fe has 401,000km on the original alt and clutch but the clutch shudders a bit (alright a lot) nowdays.

It depends on how much dust / mud it has seen. I know of some that have let go at 20,000km and others that have outlived a vehicle.

hi snoopy 2
from my experiences with alternators and that sort of k's on the clock
i would advise you to have it serviced or at least put some new bearings in it if it still has full output
as your bearings imho are at the end of there life span and could fail any day once they seize you could destroy the drive belt/splus total the unit the bearings dont cost much if you can do the job yourself
before my last outback trip i replaced mine and and also replaced the bearings in
and the bearings on the idler tension pulleys that are on my mazda and found them to be on the way out ( i'm not familar withset up on lc100)
but murphy's law applys to all although they were still in a servicable state when i pulled them out there is nothing like having piece of mind these small things are a pain if they fail in isolated areas
and its such an important component
the risk is yours and how long you wish to push your luck
cheers

Its cheap insurance to remove it and have it checked.
I've not hever had bearing issues, but have had Landcruiser alternators fail from brushes wearing out and internal regulators failing. I carry brushes and regulator as spares.

Hi Snoopy2

Now admittedly I live in an area which is not vehicler friendl;y, and I drive a 4 cylinder 3 litre diesel Hilux, with 260,000 + km on the clock since I bought it in 2000 new.

I am on my fourth alternator, third starter motor, third radiator and I have lost count of how many belts and filters. The actual structural frame is now starting to show cracks, some I have migged up, but the old girl is getting ready for retirement.

The area where I am has no bitumen at all, and we range from sand, to soft dirst, to mud to extremely corrugated road, so I am proud of my Hilux and how it has done the journey over teh years.

Cheers

hi snoopy 2
I have a 92 GQ patrol 4.2 diesel I have owned this vehicle since 94 it had 15000 k's on it when purchased,it spends about 10 months of the year in the bush towing a camper trailer and has done so for the last 12 years.CT is fitted with third battery car has dual batteries. I run two fridges constantly 24/7. and a lot of other electrical gear. Vehicle has done 400,000 k's and still has original alternator, but having said that I do carry a Spare. I'm one of the old school if ain't broke leave it a lone.
Al

Remove the belts, spin the alternator, if bearings are ok, then I would suggest that you just remove, and replace the brushes.
If its still making the correct amps and volts, and no bearing noise, thats all I would do.
With my hilux, I just replaced the brushes, the rest was fine.
6 bucks worth and some soldering.
Brushes were pretty worn down at 240k

T

hi snoopy2, should last a fair while, but then again i've had mine re-built twice in 12 months. bearing failure. lucky i have a nephew that has a auto electric business in redcliffe, qld.original mileage was 281k on the alternator.
keith

if you can do it yourself, take the parts or buy a second hand altenater as cheap onsurance. also get your starter motor checked out or carry a spare.

garranteed one will fail due to sand mud and dirt!

I prescribe to the old adage someone has already bought up, carry a spare.

or parts to fix!

cheers and ggod luck with your trip!!!

Our old girl is on her third one. Christmas Eve 08 on our southern trip and on our last trip last month it burnt out too. The old girl has had a hard life but I would think its easiest was the last two years. Has the usual twin battery, two engle fridges (note the out side temp on our last trip was freezing so the fridges wernt working that hard) Andersen to the camper. The last one we stopped at Narrabri for lunch. Could smell a burnt orange sort of smell. Then we headed to Dubbo got only a couple of ks up the road and the lights came on on the dash. Holy hm, and every other word under the sun came out. Last time it happened we made it from Echuca down the Great ocean road to Robe where it was on its last legs. Murray Bridge was it. Lucky they had one midday Christmas Eve. So we knew we would make it to Dubbo $500+ and we were on our way again.

Hi Snoopy,

I had one pack up in a volvo once, what a pain. I now have a 80series and have a spare tucked away in the back drawers, it costs me $350 cheap insurance I thought.

All the best Warren.

I had an alternator last 2 months - when taking it back to the AUTO electrician , he looked at it and said - it has dirt and water in it thats the problem....

I look at the Car , i look at him , and ask - you do see a 4 wheel drive in front of you right ? not a soccer mums car .. a 4 wheel drive ??

wont tell you the rest of the conversation :)

to answer your question how long is a piece of string? ( and no the answer is NOT 2 times half its length )