[N54Society]

I almost have this sucker out but I can't figure out what else needs to come out for it to break loose. Is it the intake manifold? Please...this is driving me crazy. Pelican parts has a guide but there is no mention of removing the manifold. They talk about removing a pulley but there are no pulleys that attach to our alternator. I have the alternator twisted upwards and you can see the pulley is connected to the motor not the alternator.



Please help!

[stashtrey]

Did you yet all three torx bolts out?

I replaced mine eakier this year and it was a massive bitch. I recall having to pull the bolts to the alternator mount which bolts to the block if I remember correctly. That was the one thing that held me up.

Looking at tge engine from the front it should be left of the alternator ...kind of a half moon type thing. Maybe that is holding you up?

[stashtrey]

Looks like you got all four bolts out of mistake. Forgot there were four.

[Abax335]

Looks like your battery cable is still attached unless you put that thirteen I see all the way back on, did you disconnect the connector to ?

[stashtrey]

....and the mount is under the alternator now that I look at your pic. That mount needs to be undone...almost positive.


See here....
http://workshop-manuals.com/bmw/1_se...ernator_(n54)/

[N54Society]

Originally Posted by stashtrey

Did you yet all three torx bolts out?

I replaced mine eakier this year and it was a massive bitch. I recall having to pull the bolts to the alternator mount which bolts to the block if I remember correctly. That was the one thing that held me up.

Looking at tge engine from the front it should be left of the alternator ...kind of a half moon type thing. Maybe that is holding you up?

No half moon bolt holding anything on the front of the alternator.

Originally Posted by stashtrey

Looks like you got all four bolts out of mistake. Forgot there were four.

Yes, all four bolts are removed, that's why it can swing back and forth.

Originally Posted by Abax335

Looks like your battery cable is still attached unless you put that thirteen I see all the way back on, did you disconnect the connector to ?

Battery cable is detached. I just put the nut back on so I don't lose it.

Originally Posted by stashtrey

....and the mount is under the alternator now that I look at your pic. That mount needs to be undone...almost positive.


See here....
http://workshop-manuals.com/bmw/1_se...ernator_(n54)/

Interesting...let me see if I can feel for the bolt.

[N54Society]

I got it out! No need to loosen that A/C compressor bracket btw. That would entail removing the A/C compressor which looks like a bitch to do as well. I was able to get it out by partially removing the intake manifold:

[stashtrey]

Nice work. There must be a few ways to get that bitch out of there. I remember being pretty miserable on that job. Saved a lot of bread though!

[N54Society]

Originally Posted by stashtrey

Nice work. There must be a few ways to get that bitch out of there. I remember being pretty miserable on that job. Saved a lot of bread though!

Yeah it looks that way. I watched a video of some guy named Marty doing this job on a 535i and it worked.

Thanks for your help and suggestions.

[mikes4]

An alternative to removing the intake manifold is trimming the forward mounting stud for the factory air box that's incorporated into the intake manifold. The part you need to remove to get the alternator out is about the size of a thumbnail. Took me about 10 secs with a hacksaw. Way easier and less drama than removing the intake manifold itself. And you'd have to REALLY know what you are looking at to be able to tell the difference after its done.

This is just IMO. I'd rather do some trimming than open up my intake manifold for an alternator. Maybe someone else will find this useful someday.

[N54Society]

Originally Posted by mikes4

An alternative to removing the intake manifold is trimming the forward mounting stud for the factory air box that's incorporated into the intake manifold. The part you need to remove to get the alternator out is about the size of a thumbnail. Took me about 10 secs with a hacksaw. Way easier and less drama than removing the intake manifold itself. And you'd have to REALLY know what you are looking at to be able to tell the difference after its done.

This is just IMO. I'd rather do some trimming than open up my intake manifold for an alternator. Maybe someone else will find this useful someday.

How did you get the alternator back in? I had to remove the A/C compressor to loosen the bracket below it (which holds the alternator) after all. It sucked. You know what's even worse? The issue wasn't even the freakin alternator! It was the power steering pump pulley which had two loose bolts. Damn I suck at being a mechanic.