63 alternator

[Ron R.]

Is it OK to use one with higher amperage than the recommened 37 amps I currently have and any suggestions where to buy one?

Ron

[Timothy B.]

Re: 63 alternator

Ron,

IMO, I don't think it will hurt anything to use a higher amp alternator.

Why do you want to $$ and change from the 37amp alternator, just make sure all the charging components are in good working order and keep you original 63 parts on the car.

[Domenic T.]

Re: 63 alternator

Ron,
When I rebuilt my 63 & 67 altinators I upgraded the inerts to give a higher output but have the same #s on the case.

DOM

[Ron R.]

Re: 63 alternator

The alternator I have is for a 64, I'm just undecided if I should buy one from a Corvette supplier such as Eckler's with 60 amps or just go to Autozone and pick one up for less money...........

[Domenic T.]

Re: 63 alternator

Ron,
I would save the money & shipping and buy local at a fraction of the price. The altinators were on many different makes of cars and are not that expensive.

DOM

[Michael H.]

Re: 63 alternator

The alternator I have is for a 64, I'm just undecided if I should buy one from a Corvette supplier such as Eckler's with 60 amps or just go to Autozone and pick one up for less money...........

Ron,

You might want to be a bit cautious on the alternator amperage. The 63 model used a unique wiring system that wasn't exactly designed for higher loads. It was the first year for alternators on Corvette and a little fine tuning was required.
For the new 64 model, all new wiring harnesses throughout the vehicle were used. Supposedly, the new harness was designed a bit differently to accept higher loads.

I think the highest amp rating for 63 was 55 but that was for cars with A/C.

If you find something in the 42 amp range, I would think that it would be ok to use.

For a fully charged battery, the higher amp alt wouldn't hurt as the regulator cuts the maximum charge but if the battery is low, it might charge at the full 60 amp rating.

As others have mentioned, I doubt there a need for a higher output alternator in a car with few high draw electrical components.

[Ron R.]

Re: 63 alternator

Thanks for the advice Michael, maybe I'll go with the 42 amp alternator from ZIP poducts for $79.95..............

Ron

[Harry S.]

Re: 63 alternator

Thanks for the advice Michael, maybe I'll go with the 42 amp alternator from ZIP poducts for $79.95..............

Ron

Try your local non-brand name auto parts store. I got a rebuilt Delco for $39.00 as I recall.

[Edward J.]

Re: 63 alternator

Ron the old saying bigger is better may not be what you'll want in this cause. as Mike says old wiring maybe overloaded and heat up and fuse together, I have seen this a few times with 63/64 car, more so when the regulator sticks on. The 37 will work just fine. but I feel the 42 amp should be okay also. Make sure to replace the regulator for safety along with the alt. If your not a numbers guy. Standard Ignition makes a good replacement.

[Dick W.]

Re: 63 alternator

Ron,
When I rebuilt my 63 & 67 altinators I upgraded the inerts to give a higher output but have the same #s on the case.

DOM

Correct numbered 61 amp on Kermit puts out 130 amps on test bench.

[Joe L.]

Re: 63 alternator

Is it OK to use one with higher amperage than the recommened 37 amps I currently have and any suggestions where to buy one?

Ron

Ron------


AC Delco #334-2108, aka GM #19135666. This is a 42 amp-rated unit. This is a quality rebuild and should cost you about 40 bucks.

If your current alternator is original to the car, you'll definitely want to keep it. If so, you could even take all the parts out of the rebuilt unit and transfer them to your case.

[Duke W.]

Re: 63 alternator

The only reason to install a higher amp alternator is if the exiting unit will not maintain at least 13.5 volts at idle speed, and unless you have added additional electrical equipment that increases electrical system load, a higher amp alternator does nothing.

If idle speed volatage is marginal, a 100 to 200 RPM increase may do the trick.

Also, pay heed to the previous warning on total system load in the '63 wiring system.

Alternators are easy and inexpensive to rebuild. The procedure in in the '63 Corvette Shop Manual.

Duke

[Domenic T.]

Re: 63 alternator

Let me say that (I think) Duke is saying the voltage regulator when he says the (exciting unit).

There are a lot of acronyms that mean different things depending what you are talking about, and terms that are hard to understand if you are not a engineer.

Maybe laymans terms need to be expressed if some are not familiar with the terms or acrnyms.

The higher amp altinators are wired for higher amps (wire size), the wires won't burn if you ask for more than the altinator can provide.

The more the amps used, the more HP required to run the altinator under load.

Example,
My C2-67/435 HP altinator was 34 amps and air conditioning was not available because of the HP loss required to use A/C, along with the RPM's on the compressor.
ALL vette C-2 compressors were lower compression because of RPM's.

The 435 vette came with a 4:11 (stock) and a 2:20 1st gear in the 4 speed and no air conditioning so the 34 amp was sufficient for the cars needs, (radios and heaters were not needed).

Many raced them with the belts off (12 sec) so they could get reduce HP loss in the quarter mile.

Don't worry about increasing the amps, because in the day, (drag racing,) we never had power brakes, power steering, or air conditioning on a drag car.

You really don't need the amps but you will have a stronger altinator. I did mine because I installed air conditioning on my 435 vette because I wasn't going to beat it any more trying to get a trophy.

Long away around it but that was my opinion.

DOM

[Ron R.]

Re: 63 alternator

Do you know where I can find an AC Delco alternator at for a reasonable price?

[Edward J.]

Re: 63 alternator

Ron, do a internet search for a AC Delco distributor in your area. I have a auto shop and we have a couple of local auto parts stores in my area that can get parts for me. Just to let you know if you use a Delco alternator its may take a few days to ship . most places may not stock it locally.