In the market for a new alternator

[LagunaVert]

For the last few weeks i have been plauged with a dead battery in the morning. Its not every day but if I let the car sit for a day the next morning it doesnt have the juice to turn over. My mechanic looked at it and told me my alternator wasn't puttIng out the volts it should be. I replaced the alternator 2 years ago with a working one, but i had no info on it other then it worked. So i guess its time to bite the bullet and buy a new one. Are there any brands i should stay away from? What kind of alts. Are you guys using? Also I noticed that all the AdvancedPepZone stores only have "remanufactured" ones and i have heard some horror stories about going that route. Any thoughts or insight is greatly apprieciated!

Edit: Forgot to mention, i have a standard m20 in a 1992 325i convertible.

[nando]

I would start by spending $20 on a new voltage regulator before replacing the whole alternator. it takes like 5 minutes to replace, too.

[jlevie]

If the bearings in the alternator are still good, replacing the voltage regulator and brushes may be all that is needed. It the car has a Bosch alternator that can be done w/o removing the alternator from the car.

But, you may have excessive parasitic draw that is running the battery down while the car is parked. Check for that by disconnecting the negative battery lead and inserting an ammeter between the negative lead and the battery. Normal parasitic draw should be 0.030-0.060a. If you see more than that, remove one fuse at a time to find the offending circuit(s). If the draw isn't on any of the fused circuits, disconnect the alternator to see if its regulator is the cause.

Improperly installed aftermarket electronics are the most common cause of excessive parasitic draw. If the car has excessive parasitic draw that is where I'd look first.

[LagunaVert]

Awesome, thanks for the info. I will look into the parasitic drain then grab a new regulator if the alternator is the true issue. Thanks guys!

[LagunaVert]

So i checked for parasitic drain today and got nothing on my meter. Does that mean i have no drain or that i did something wrong? My money is on the latter of the two.

[MaksV]

I have an alternator FS in my sig with a new belt, and a new VR. Shoot me a Pm if interested.

[jlevie]

So i checked for parasitic drain today and got nothing on my meter. Does that mean i have no drain or that i did something wrong? My money is on the latter of the two.

I don't know what meter you used, nor do I know if you were using it correctly. The best meter to use is an auto-ranging DMM with current measurement capability of at least 10A. Many of those require that the leads to the meter be changed to measure current.