Don't you just hate it....

When a shop/parts guy tells you a similar part will work and when you go to install it, it doesn't? I figured the alternator in my little Ranger was bad so I phoned around to get some prices on a rebuilt exchange. I called one place and they said maybe it only needed brushes or something simple and might be cheap to fix the one I had. They were $25 cheaper if I needed an exchange alt. Well, I needed an exchange alternator. It had a smaller pulley but the guy said it will actually turn faster and work better. OK. Drove 45 minutes out to my land in the gas pig 6.0L Chev. to put it on. Put the 3 bolts in and went to slip the belt on. The slack adjuster was all the way in(tight) and the belt was still really loose. Out come the 3 bolts and I have to make a 1 1/2 hour round trip to get the proper alternator and pulley. A bigger pulley would have better than a smaller one but I even questioned the guy about it. So much for saving $25. I'll spend more than that on gas getting the right pulley. Why the guy didn't just change the pulleys is beyond me, they rebuild the alts. in house. I'd like to give the guy a shot upside the head. Anyone else gone through something like this and how did you handle it? Dave

Smaller pulley needs shorter belt. Physics 101

'88 Chevy with 5.7. A couple of times I purchased a Goodyear serpentine belt that was "supposed" to work and was too short. (I forgot that I'd already been through this once before the second time around. Both times I had to take the Goodyear belt back, go to another store and get a Gates belt.

I purchased a replacement A/C compressor for my '92 Seville. After I got it all back together it wouldn't pull a vacuum. Found out that the boss where the manifold bolts up was different between the two compressors. I had to put an extra washer between the manifold and compressor to get it to seal.

That kind of thing is what made me quit going to the local parts place it always turns into 3 trips 1 for the wrong part 2nd to exchange the wrong part and order the correct part and tird time findout the slack jawed halfwit behind the coumter got the order wrong so its another thirty mile drive to a place i like that gets things right so I usualy just do the extra driving right away only things i trust the local store for is the totaly butt simple stuff

what you said.

Depends on how much smaller. There is a few inches of adjustment but this pulley was way too small. Dave

The best thing to do is find a place that sells good stuff,tries to get along with you,and wont let you leave without checking things out good.It might be hard to find that place,and it may be hard to find the right exact part every time,but sometimes it just takes 2 trips.If it takes 3 then you might want to get mad and go somewhere else.Sometimes stuff just happens and its not the guy at the parts counters fault.Changing a pulley is not too big of a deal usually on an alternator though and it seems like that maybe would have made things better.Maybe he knew yours wouldnt fit and by the time you bought a pulley you wouldnt save that much,or maybe they didnt have a pulley that would fit and he knew it.Or the most likely is that maybe he had no clue of what he was telling you,and didnt know it wouldnt work.Whatever the reason if you got it fixed in just 2 trips,you didnt get hurt too bad.
Working with young guys sometimes it surprises me the stuff they dont know.Usually you think a mechanic would know,and they would,but now days you cant be sure of that.

When I get something like that I match my old one up with the replacement and don't leave until I find one that does. Or leave and find one somewhere else that does.
Very easy to do and saves so much hassel.

Also a good idea if you can hold onto the core until new part is on and working.

I went back and the guy put my original pulley on the new alternator. I'm sure the same alternator is used on different vehicles, so maybe some have more adjustment than a Ranger. I'll know the next time to get everything the same. If the alt. doesn't work after this, then I'll be mad. I think it will be fine. Dave