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“This stage is all about the alternator, which converts mechanical energy into electrical energy to charge the car’s battery. Take care when assembling it as some of the parts can be fragile!”
Contents
Parts
Materials: All of the parts in this stage are plastic.
Build
The Alternator
Step 1
Retrieve your Engine assembly from the previous stage. Fit the Alternator Bracket to this location on the Engine Base, making sure the ‘prongs’ of the bracket are closer to the bottom of the engine, as shown:
Secure the Alternator Bracket into place with one (1) Type A screw.
This is your friendly reminder to try using 3-in-One Oil on all screws going into metal:
Step 2
The Alternator Cover has a small tab that matches up to a small notch in the Alternator Base (arrows below).
Take care when handling the Alternator Cover, it has small pins along the outer edge that can be easily damaged (circled below):
Align these two parts and firmly press them together – no glue is required.
Those three delicate pins of the Alternator Cover should fit nicely into matching recesses around the Alternator Body:
To add a bit of interesting color here, I ‘painted’ the two electrical terminals on the back of the Alternator Cover with my Metallic Gold Sharpie:
Step 3
Slide the large pin of the Alternator Base through this hole of the Engine Base.
This is the larger pin of the Alternator assembly:
Slide this pin through the matching hole on the side of the engine (above the Alternator Bracket we just installed), as shown:
Rotate the Alternator assembly down and gently spread the ‘prongs’ of the Alternator Bracket until the two lower pins snap into place:
Once all three pins of the Alternator are seated, it will hold itself in place just fine:
Step 4
Slide the long pin of the Alternator Drive Belt through the front hole of the Alternator Fan, as shown:
Then, press the long pin of the Alternator Drive Belt into the front center hole of the Alternator, while the short pin of the Alternator Drive Belt is pressed into the matching hole on the Engine Base. This is a press-fit and does not require any glue:
Step 5
Press the pin of the Engine Support into this hole on the opposite side of the Engine Base. Make sure the tabs of the Engine Support are in the vertical position, as shown.
On my model, this was a very tight fit and required that I shave the paint off the Engine Support peg with my hobby knife:
Thoughts
I love the red band and the side rod details on our Alternator! And, while the Drive Belt is stationary, the Alternator Fan is able to spin freely.
Next Up
Stage 21 – Clutch Bell/Cover, Clutch Master Cylinder/Control Rod/Spring, Clutch Release Mechanism Cover