[TR] Nippondenso mini alternator (coffee can, racing, etc alt)

[aribert neumann]

Following up on the thread below - the Suzuki Swift alternator.  A number
of racing catalogs list a small light weight alt for big $$.  I bought an
e-bay  one (didn't know it was Chinese until I received it).  Earlier this
Summer I happened upon the Sideways Forums (
http://sideways-technologies.co.uk/forums/index.php/forum/1-technical-discussion-boards/
),found the Small Triumph archived folder and started reading the posts and
found several articles referring to the mini Denso alt and recognised the
alt as looking like the one I bought off e-Bay.  I suspect that this is the
small Nippondenso alternator.

>From my reading, the smallest of the alt came with Japanese mini cars at
about 40 amp.  Same alt, but only 25 amp, found on Kubota tractors.  Some
links:
http://crazyspitfire.blogspot.com/2006/05/22-kilo-saving-alternator-joys.html
http://westfield-world.com/daihatsu_alternator.html (has wiring diagram)

I was at a pick & pull type of salvage yard and found an 85 Honda Civic
with what I thought was the mini alt.  Once I had it removed, it was the
same pattern but a size bigger.

BTW, every so often the discussion comes up about dismantling frt brake
calipers (and how the caliper bolts are sacred - don't undo them).  Some of
our Triumph brethren on the other side of the pond are splitting the
calipers to put spacers between in order to run vented rotors.




---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Randall" <TR3driver at ca.rr.com>
To: <jerryvv at roadrunner.com>, <triumphs at autox.team.net>
Cc:
Date: Mon, 1 Oct 2012 08:31:56 -0700
Subject: Re: [TR] 10Si alternator application
Thanks, Jerry, I'll pass that along.

> There is a small
> Alternator that puts out around 40 amps, does anyone know
> that application?

Chris "Mad" Marx told me that his came from an 89 Suzuki Swift.
Unfortunately my FLAPS didn't have that one in stock, and I don't know the
application for the unit they sold me.  It is not a single wire design,
there are 3 control tabs as well as the main output.  I haven't researched
yet what they are, but I'm guessing that one is for the dash light, one is
battery sense (which you could just wire to the output if you want, I will
wire it to the starter solenoid), and the third needs to get power from the
ignition circuit.  That seems to be what most of the Japanese alternators
use.

-- Randall