1966 Alternator help

[abaucom]

Last fall, went to prepare my 1966 conv. for winter storage. I park in my bldg. underground parking garage, top & windows down, car cover always. Had not started the Bird for two weeks, previously everything worked. Tried to crank, would not start. Called Auto Club. Attached something to battery, car started, I drove out of parking garage to put top up (no clearance to put top up in my underground parking space). Engine running, hit switch for top up, top half up, engine stalled. Auto club again boosted battery, top closed. Raised 3 of 4 power windows with engine running, engine stopped. Again attached a battery booster, I just turned around and went back underground, backed into my parking space, engine died. There it has been parked since late last Oct., underground and car covered.

Auto Club person told me Alternator shot, most likely I finished my 3- year old battery.

OK, I need a new Alternator, plus another part or two. Called sources, is my 1966 T-Bird a single or double pulley? I am not mechanically inclined, I do not have a clue! What would be the correct Alternator for a 1966 T-Bird convertible, produced Feb. 1966, standard 390, with all options such as A/C, power windows, seats, etc.? And yes, I have all the damn manuals. All those historic manuals do not help me finding the correct vendor parts in 2020.

Help would be appreciated as to correct alternator and additional parts I might need for my 1966 Bird conv. I have made arrangements to get my Bird either started or go through hours getting it towed out of my underground parking garage this Thursday in the AM.

[john6t6]

I think it refers to whether you have 1 or 2 belts on your alternator pulley.

[Alan H. Tast]

And yes, I have all the damn manuals. All those historic manuals do not help me finding the correct vendor parts in 2020.

Help would be appreciated as to correct alternator and additional parts I might need for my 1966 Bird conv. I have made arrangements to get my Bird either started or go through hours getting it towed out of my underground parking garage this Thursday in the AM.

Re: manuals not being of any help, I beg to differ. From the year/model/application, along with an original P&A or engineering part number to help with sleuthing for a part, a COMPETENT mechanic or parts person should be able to track down a comparable replacement or specifications for what the original used. There are places that will rebuild your existing alternator - RAVEN and others can chime in on places in your Province that perform this service if your mechanic doesn't have a clue on where to send it to.

[Terry64HT]

Are you sure it's the alternator? An opinion by some guy looking at it while giving you a boost might be suspect. I think voltage regulators fail a lot more than alternators. You need a proper diagnosis that will determine the alternator output and status of the regulator. New replacement parts are readily available. There are also several good rebuilders here in town.
Terry
64HT

[RAVEN]

Since Alan commented, and brought me into the conversation, I will gladly help where I can, tho roughly 6 hours away, from Ottawa.
The first thing I see in the posts is that the car was parked, and left all winter, possibly without the battery being disconnected or even charged. It was mentioned that the car was boosted, by a power pack or capacitor unit. These units are an emergency power supply for short burst voltage but do not replenish a battery to its rated capacity..After starting the car, did you notice the AMP gauge move to its full + side, or did it stay neutral. I have seen where a "flat battery" is boosted and the car started, causing a high in rush demand from the alternator. This causes the regulator to close and burn it's contacts, in simple terms. OR the reverse input from a booster pack/boosting battery causes the Alternator diodes to short and fail.
Either way you have a situation where the Alternator will not work to recharge the battery, and in essence the car runs off of the residual voltage in the battery until it goes flat and no voltage to energize the ignition system.
My first thought would be to manually recharge the battery to full capacity, (if you have not killed it by leaving in an flat state) then replace the voltage regulator. This is a simple and inexpensive method to try, vs having to Re and Re the Alternator.
In regard to rebuilding the Alternator, the local auto jobber should be able to provide an exchange unit, or you could find a rebuilder in your area and get yours rebuilt. If you go the exchange path, make sure you verify that it has a "V" belt pulley, NOT a serpentine belt pulley assembly.
In the position that you need to move the car from underground storage, and you said you were able to limp it out of the garage then limp it back in, I would say you could limp it back out again to facilitate the repairs. By fully recharging the battery first, and verifying that it is in functional form, you should have the necessary power to run the car.
Locally to me, I have a Starter/Alternator rebuilder who could fix your problem, but would not be cost effective. This leads me to direct you to do a Yellow Pages SEARCH for Auto Electric Service or a Starter/Alternator rebuilder.
Since the battery was left discharged, you have probably killed it, and if it froze, you now have a bigger issue of battery acid all over the inner fender and battery tray.
Good luck.

[David Langhorne]

For about $10 why not buy a voltmeter which will show whether you have a faulty alternator or not. You will obviously have to remove the battery to charge it first. If it holds about 12.5v when charged you should be able to start the car. Then you can check if it is charging at about 14.5v.
Either way you should be able to narrow it down. Unlikely battery and alternator would fail together. Batteries like to be charged regularly!

[jtschug]

The stock '66 alternator peaks out at about 60 Amps. The convertible mechanism draws at peak over 75 Amps. I used a 1974 Lincoln Mark alternator and voltage regulator to bump up the power. I think I had to change the spacer between the engine and alternator, but otherwise it bolted in. Pulley alignment is critical because more power means more torque through the belt, so if it isn't lined up right, it will squeal.

[RAVEN]

Let's not confuse the issue, and give alternate modifications. It just appears that a Flat Battery occurred and the jump start process COULD HAVE damaged the Reg or the Alternator. First thing is to get car out of garage area then check and service the necessary items.
A stock alternator trying to power a total excessive load, can cause a burn out of one or other electrical parts. Just saying.
Once a fully charged battery is installed then the next step is to move car if possible, then do the repairs, IF REQUIRED.

[redstangbob]

In this situation I think the straight forward thing is to remove the battery, charge and test it. Most parts stores will let you drop off and they will do that for you. If the battery fails you buy a new one, if it's good it's now fully charged. You can't test a charging system IN THE CAR, with a bad battery, don't bother. Good luck, Bob C

[sseebart]

I am not mechanically inclined, I do not have a clue! What would be the correct Alternator for a 1966 T-Bird convertible, produced Feb. 1966, standard 390, with all options such as A/C, power windows, seats, etc.? ... Help would be appreciated as to correct alternator and additional parts I might need for my 1966 Bird conv. I have made arrangements to get my Bird either started or go through hours getting it towed out of my underground parking garage this Thursday in the AM.

If you're not mechanically inclined, I think you're on the right track having the car towed to a shop (hopefully one skilled in vintage cars) for diagnosis and repair.

I'm not sure how long you've had this car, but if you haven't established a relationship with a good repair shop, now would be a good time.* You've got a highly optioned, desirable car, which is great, but vintage cars are notoriously high-maintenance. This won't be the last time you'll need to get something fixed.

~Steve

*Unless, of course, your aim with this car was to teach yourself the essentials of auto repair, but that's not the vibe I'm getting from your post.

[RAVEN]

OK Thursday came and how did you do?
Did you recharge battery and get the car out of the underground?
Do you know what is wrong or not working?

[abaucom]

Update:
Sorry for the late reply, just got the Bird out of shop this week.
Previous owner installed a something alternator from and 1992 Ford something. A total mess. Had to replace alternator, lots of wiring, replace my 3 year old battery, battery cables, fabricated new wiring for exciter, wiring for exciter completely screwed up (wires cut, etc.).

It was a complete jerry ridged mess. Only driven my Bird about 500 miles in the last three years. Told the incorrect alternator and messed up wiring, most likely I have only been driving on battery power for 3-years. No wonder battery crapped out. Much other wiring that had to be replaced, something about the exciter cable being cut off.

$1,600 later everything needing replacement has been replaced. Back in my underground parking garage, no where to drive as we are still locked down in Ottawa, Ontario. Did fill up the tank after I picked up the Bird. Wow, gas was not this cheap since 2003, when I moved to Canada.

[abaucom]

Other note: When I bought the Bird from a US Broker, pretty video with sound track, was told the Bird had been redone, paid a premium price. Well, suspension sucked, power antenna did not work, power windows worked sometimes, conv.top up & down a mess. Shipped auto to Canada at great expense. Two different so called quality Restoration shops, $8,000 later, charged thousands for crap work and charged for work not completed. Then found a small shop dealing with Mini Coopers. They resolved all my conv. top issues at a reasonable price.
Current Alternator issue: Had my Bird towed to the same garage that I have been using for all my late model cars for 16 years. Did not take a restoration garage to identify and fix problems on a 54 year old Bird for a reasonable price.