Hey, I did a quick search to see if anyone had any "How To" on replacing an alternator, as I know they are a pain and by-the-book it requires the passenger axle to be removed. I have found a 2nd, comparatively easy(er?) way to do it. Removing the drive shaft isn't horrible, but you will most likely lose fluid, have to replace the big axle nut (that many don't have a socket for [my snap-on 36 impact was too thick to fit in the hub, so I would need a non-impact socket]) and may damage the axle seal popping it out. So here is the other, relatively easy way:
Alternator Replacement, Normally Aspirated Fiat 500, 2012
- Park car, apply park brake, turn wheel full right
- Jack up passenger front side of vehicle as much as you can, and secure with jack-stand
- Remove RF wheel, caliper (hang from spring with wire), and rotor (not necessary but makes life easy)
- Remove large plastic splash tray under engine, partially remove front section of RF fender liner to access hidden bolts for serpentine belt plastic guard, remove serpentine belt plastic guard
- Remove serpentine belt (by rotating tensioner, but if you don't know how, you might not want to be doing this job)
- Pop wheel speed sensor wire out from the 2-3 C-slots holding it in place to give you more slack. You can try to remove the sensor, but more often than not it will be seized in place and you'll break it, so I find it's better to leave it in and just give yourself lots of room by slacking the wire for it
- Remove the sway bar link from strut
- Remove spindle/knuckle from strut
- Remove spindle/knuckle from ball joint, allow spindle to rest on control arm for now, try not to pull your CV joint out by pulling outwards on the spindle
- Leave the tie rod end attached to the spindle
- Remove both wires from back of Alternator (small one was an 8mm and the other I think was a 13mm)
- Remove both lower bolts and the upper bolt that hold the alternator
- Crawl under vehicle, with left hand, grab spindle and push up towards the sky and slightly forwards (diagonally up and forward) and with your other hand grab the alternator and rotate it in it's tiny cubby hole it reluctantly wants to leave until the single mounting hole on the top of the alternator is pointing straight down, and the mating surface of that hole is facing the front of the car. The pulley should be pointing to the passenger side, and the plastic back of the alternator should be pointing to the passenger side. In this position, and while pushing the drive shaft (via the spindle) towards the sky, it should just slip straight down between the subframe and the drive shaft without any serious struggles or removal of the exhaust.
Benefit? No dropping subframe, no messy driveshaft removal, no weird pry bars or birch sticks tied in weird ways with twine (as I saw on one YouTube video), etc. The only slightly stubborn part of this is popping the lower ball joint, but you'd have to do that anyways to take the drive shaft out, and there is lots of simple tools and tricks for popping the ball joint out anyways.
One more tip: if you remove your alternator, bring it to a shop to just get it rebuilt (most can do it in 2-3h if they have the parts) and you'll be paying CDN $150 instead of $450-550 for a new or rebuilt one from a part store/dealer.
Let me know if this works for anyone else!
Alternator Replacement, Normally Aspirated Fiat 500, 2012
- Park car, apply park brake, turn wheel full right
- Jack up passenger front side of vehicle as much as you can, and secure with jack-stand
- Remove RF wheel, caliper (hang from spring with wire), and rotor (not necessary but makes life easy)
- Remove large plastic splash tray under engine, partially remove front section of RF fender liner to access hidden bolts for serpentine belt plastic guard, remove serpentine belt plastic guard
- Remove serpentine belt (by rotating tensioner, but if you don't know how, you might not want to be doing this job)
- Pop wheel speed sensor wire out from the 2-3 C-slots holding it in place to give you more slack. You can try to remove the sensor, but more often than not it will be seized in place and you'll break it, so I find it's better to leave it in and just give yourself lots of room by slacking the wire for it
- Remove the sway bar link from strut
- Remove spindle/knuckle from strut
- Remove spindle/knuckle from ball joint, allow spindle to rest on control arm for now, try not to pull your CV joint out by pulling outwards on the spindle
- Leave the tie rod end attached to the spindle
- Remove both wires from back of Alternator (small one was an 8mm and the other I think was a 13mm)
- Remove both lower bolts and the upper bolt that hold the alternator
- Crawl under vehicle, with left hand, grab spindle and push up towards the sky and slightly forwards (diagonally up and forward) and with your other hand grab the alternator and rotate it in it's tiny cubby hole it reluctantly wants to leave until the single mounting hole on the top of the alternator is pointing straight down, and the mating surface of that hole is facing the front of the car. The pulley should be pointing to the passenger side, and the plastic back of the alternator should be pointing to the passenger side. In this position, and while pushing the drive shaft (via the spindle) towards the sky, it should just slip straight down between the subframe and the drive shaft without any serious struggles or removal of the exhaust.
Benefit? No dropping subframe, no messy driveshaft removal, no weird pry bars or birch sticks tied in weird ways with twine (as I saw on one YouTube video), etc. The only slightly stubborn part of this is popping the lower ball joint, but you'd have to do that anyways to take the drive shaft out, and there is lots of simple tools and tricks for popping the ball joint out anyways.
One more tip: if you remove your alternator, bring it to a shop to just get it rebuilt (most can do it in 2-3h if they have the parts) and you'll be paying CDN $150 instead of $450-550 for a new or rebuilt one from a part store/dealer.
Let me know if this works for anyone else!
