1999 F-150, 5.4L, with a/c. Is the alternator rebuildable bearing wise? Thanks for the help. John

 

I wouldn't waste my time rebuilding an alternator. Just replace one on my 97 Lariat due to bad bearings and voltage regulator going bad. New one was $120.00 and took about an hour to remove and replace. Easy fix.

 

As opposed to a 30 dollar rebuild kit complete with bushings, regulator, diode, and brushes? Not too much more time to rebuild the alternator.... 4 bolts?

 

I know that with the parts rebuilding an alt. is not a real big deal. Some would have trouble doing it correctly though. Also, a rebuilt alt. would come with a warranty. $90 is a big diff. in price but for those who might not be that knowledgeable about alt. rebuilding the rebuilt is a good option. As a side thought, the bad bearings can also do damage to the case which of course would not be rebuildable. Just the opinion of someone who has been down this road before.

 

My truck is still under warranty, but my deductable is $100. I was wondering if the bearings can be replaced or if they are part of the housing. I could put new bearings in and avoid giving anymore money to the Ford stealer. I bring it in to the dealer with a problem, they claim there is nothing wrong, and charge me $100 bucks to look at it. The alternator bearings are going bad, a deaf man could figure that out. You can hear it better inside the cab than under the hood. I took the serpentine belt off and rotated all the pulleys, the alternator was the most likely culprit.

 

If your bearings are bad, you could also damage the rotor and/or stator.