Volvo 850, S70, V70 alternator repair, replace regulator.

[erikv11]

As has been discussed at length here, the Bosch VR you suggest won't work with Redneck's alternator.

We all know mileage is only a general (and often poor) reporter of the condition of something. If a slip ring is deeply grooved and worn out, it doesn't matter how many miles it has on it. Looking at it is far more relevant than knowing its mileage.

You may have missed an important point that has been made several times in this and other threads: vendor web sites are of little value when sourcing a VR for these cars. You can't use the model of the vehicle as a guide for part numbers, you must open up the alternator and look at the VR part number inside there.

Check this out for a full discussion: https://www.matthewsvolvosite.com/forums ... =1&t=61610

The $110 Bosch alternators on eBay are the cheap remans people have been posting about, many people are not interested in that option.

[Redneck]

Erikv11 is right. Each Bosch alternator is different. There are about 50 variants or more. The same situation is with Bosch starter motor. It is important to find your Bosch part number. Volvo PN is irrelevant here. Bosch alternators/starters are in many other auto brands and are the top, most popular brand around the world. Having that Bosch PN, you look for parts for it and verify it with various aftermarket manufacturer catalogs for compatibility that you can easily search for online. This is a tedious task, but that is what you need to do to do it right.

When it comes to rebuilding our alternator/starter, the problem we have is that we are in a wrong country. USA is a rich country where people throw away things and buy new, or refurbished ready to install. You don't really see any American online store selling individual alternator/starter components (unless you want to buy some Dorman brand in Autozone that almost fits well and works for now:). What you have on eBay from USA sellers are overpriced, no name expensive aftermarket parts with suspicious quality. Stuff they got in huge quantity from Alibaba (and 40 thieves:) from China. The solution is to look in European online stores, better look for Eastern European online stores. It is a big industry in Eastern Europe to sell stuff like that. People there actually fix things instead of throwing them away as in the USA. They don't really have any Chinese stuff there. Mostly German or other European aftermarket manufacturers.

The good thing about USA is that you can easily find used parts cheap on eBay from junkyard pullers and get those components to fix them from Eastern Europe. So that is what you do! You get German or Italian aftermarket brands! from Eatern Europe where the US dollars are actually worth something. I am sourcing all my alternator/starter components directly from Latvia most likely. $100 in Latvia is a lot of money and they treat you well if you spend that much there. American eBay sellers often treat you poorly. If you ask too many questions before you buy, they block you:) because they are scared:). That is my experience buying stuff from US eBay junk yard hyenas:) LOL:)..One guy for example photographed hundreds of parts (that he does not own) from the junkyard still in cars and made up an eBay store pretending that he owns the junk yard:)... Some of you will think that it is a great idea:)..It smells weird to me. My experience buying directly from foreign sellers on eBay has been really good and very reliable.

Some of the refurbished alternators/starters may be very good, BUT, they need to be Manufacturer Refurbished by Bosch. Those will probably have all Bosch components in them. But I still don't trust these sellers especially from eBay claiming that they were Remanufactured by Bosch. Anybody can print up a label these days and slap on the Alternator/Starter. I would have to be buying from Bosch authorized parts dealer to be 80% confident:)

Life gets hard if you are as picky as I am:).. But hey..my parts are always the best that I can get:) and my repairs are perfect:)... When I drive at night in the snowstorm in the mountains I feel gooooood:)

[Atis]

They don't really have any Chinese stuff there.

Unfortunately it is not the case...
You have right, you can find a lot of internal alternator or starter parts in Europe and especially in eastern Europe, but it is hard to find a place where you can be sure that the quality is good.

In eastern Europe it has a tradition as well to repair things, as in the former times it was quite usual that 99% of the main parts were simply not available in the market, so your only choice was to repair it somehow.

My biggest problem regarding USA vs. Europe market is not that people can afford to throw away things in the USA, but the prices in Europe. For example a MAF sensor is more than 5 times expensive here in Europe, than ordering from the states including postage cost and I can continue with spark plugs, wires etc. So in the last 3 times I ended up ordering parts from the States.

[Redneck]

I was talking about the individual components of Alternator/Starters.. bushings, slip rings, Voltage Regulators etc.. components that go inside a unit part. I am shopping for these parts right now and I can't find them in USA for a reasonable price. There is also very little information about the compatibility. If you want a ready to instal part, it is probably cheaper in USA because everybody wants to sell here and the competition and market is huge.

I still think that I can get European auto parts in Europe for less. Next time I will try sourcing it from Eastern Europe. Too many middle man here. It takes a lot of patience and some intelligence to do a good search for the parts you want for a great price. Try taking your Volvo to a dealer in Seattle to fix it:)

LOL.. I don't think people in USA can afford to throw away things:) It is just more economical for those who can't fix it themselves. Labor here is incredibly expensive. When the car is old, it is cheaper to throw it away than repair it, unless you can do it yourself.

[Atis]

everybody wants to sell here and the competition and market is huge.

You have right! That should be the main key point...
I know that you were referring the internal parts. For these parts once I have checked the types and sizes, but I have to find that piece of paper...