I've been having problems with my 2004 ram 1500 where when I stop at stop lights and my car dies. I have had it tested at the local autozone. my battery guage has been goin crazy when i sit at idle. I have come to the conclusion that i need a new alternator. is there a specific kind that i should invest in. I hear that autozone and advanced auto parts get their parts from china and that they are poorly made. any ideas on this?

 

also is there different sizes or one that puts out more juice than another? please help.

 

You can get a 160 ah from Auto Zone or Advance. What did Auto Zone say? It's not likely they send the cores all the way to China to have them remanufactured.

 

160A is the biggest but keep in mind the PCM controls the voltage output of the alt

 

Ok but what does that mean? I know, after looking online, that the PCM, or powertrain control module, does many things along the lines of diagnostics and such but does that mean that I need to get it reprogramed in order to allow for a full usage of the 160 amps? If so, how do i go about doing the reprogramming? Thanks for the help though. Much appreciated.

 

New or Remanufactured/Rebuilt Alternator reading material found here!

http://www.aa1car.com/library/rebuilds.htm