As winter draws on (you have got yours on haven't you?), I feel that I would benefit from upgrading the electrics on my 66 super minx estate.
My research tells me that I can replace my Lucas dynamo with an alternator, and that alternators from several cars will fit.  Which ones?  And what else do I need to change?  On a scale of 1-10, where changing a tyre is 1 and changing an engine is 10 (I've done both), where does this upgrade rate?
Does it mean that I will be able to do something about the feeble and unintentional intermittent wipers too?

cheers
Gary in the UK
Super Minx Estate 1966

Hi Gary,

There's quite a good article on converting an Alpine to Alternator on the Classic Sunbeam site:
http://sunbeamalpine.org/content.html
From the home page, click on 'Back Issues' and then click on 'January 1999' at the top of the list.  You'll need to scroll down a bit on the page that comes up from that link.

The process should be quite similar for a Super Minx

Cheers

Vic

Gary

The easy answer is to get a suitable alternator with inbuilt regulator.  Here in Australia Holden (GM) ones work great.  You need to fabricate a suitable mounting as the alternator mount is shorter, I have just done the bottom mounts on a length of threaded rod through the original generator bracket.  This allows an amount of fore and aft adjustment to get the pulley aligned.  Then it is just a matter of getting a suitable adjuster piece for the top mount.

The wiring is very simple with this sort of alternator.  One heavy charge wire from the big "+" terminal to the battery (the inbuilt diodes do away with a need for a mechanical cut out relay) and the "ind" wire which connects to the wire running from the "ign" warning light to the control box.  I have a wiring diagram of the changes which are far simpler to do than to describe.  I last did this on a '67 Hunter but the control box is the same through the whole range.  I wrote it all down as I had the thought that somebody would ask just this question some time :-)

Once the alternator is mounted the rest is only a few hours work allowing for refreshment stops :-))

Do it my way and people would never know it wasn't a factory job.

Keith
55 Californian

Editor's note: Keith has promised to send me the diagram (for a '66 Hunter) when he gets time to scan it.

In Britain, Lucas ACR alternators are readily available and the easiest route is to use the mounting bracket/alternator/fan belt/adjuster off a late Commer PB this all bolts straight on, follow Keith Johnson's wire linking on the control box (I soldered straps behind on mine so they don't show) and the job's complete.

More than a year later, another version of the discussion begins –

I want one with a built in regulator.

Someone has already suggested an (Australian) Valiant unit might be a suitable choice.  That idea appeals to me because I have a client who is a Valiant specialist.

Thanks

=====
Russ Maddock

1963 Sunbeam Alpine sIII
1969 Sunbeam Imp Sport
2001 Peugeot-UK 206 1.6
2002 Subaru Impreza (Hers!)

Jus' remember they're hot in the back!!

cheers,
Glen

I went to see my Valiant contact.  The alternators he showed me looked about right but I had doubts about the pulley.  It seemed to be designed for a wider fanbelt than the Rootes pulley and I imagine that's not a good thing.

I might chat to a sparky I know.

Thanks
Russ

Needs one wire to the battery positive (hot side) and one to the charge indicator light.

I must finish a conversion wiring diagram I promised about a year ago.  I should join "procranstinators anonymous"

Keith

        One of my Minx has a Bosch alt from a water cooled VW, another one I installed a GM alternator with the external regulator up where the Lucas one was.   This is a nice upgrade, and doesn't hurt the restorability of our 'valuable prestigous motorcars'.

Chuck

I use the one used on HQ - HZ Kingswood.  They also polish up nicely :-)

Keith

Years ago, I was conversant with the pre-internal-regulator Delco alternators, common to about 1972 and older GM cars in the States. I had a stack of them and used to rebuild them.

The positive and negative diodes are physically interchangeable so pressing them out of their respective heatsinks and pressing them back in opposite locations effectively converts them to positive ground operation. They require the external regulator though, because only the external regulator is tolerant of reversing the polarity: no semiconductors!

This worked very well for me (in my '60 Husky, 1390cc) for a number of years. Though that series of alternators were available in many different output capacities (35a to about 63a), the differences were entirely in the rotor, all the other components were nearly identical. I used the smallest rotor (35 amp) so that full loading of the alternator would affect the engine's output the least.

Later, I discovered that nearly everything on the Husky would work as well using negative ground, including the windscreen motor, the temperature and fuel gauges, and the starter, so I installed a different Delcotron (internal regulator S10 model) and went to negative ground.

Regards,
Al S.

The upside is you can use all the cheaply available radio/sound systems and electronic gadgets.

Keith