How do you replace an alternator in your 97 Honda civic?

Answer 1

1.) disconnect the battery

2.) jack up the front driver's side and remove the tire (trust me, its worth it)

3.) pop the hood and remove the top 12mm bolt that secures the alternator to the bronze pivot bracket.

4.) remove the obvious big green plug from the passenger side of the alternator, then remove the small black rubber boot on top of the alternator, exposing the charging post. Remove the wire from the charging post, the securing nut is 10mm.

5.) Crawl under the car and remove the long bolt that secures the bottom of the alternator to the bottom bracket attached to the block. This can only been accessed/seen from the bottom of the car. Careful, you're about to get some dirt in your eyes. The alternator will probably fall straight down and crush everything in its path once this 2nd bolt is removed, so make sure everything you unplugged is tucked away somewhere safe.

6.) now that the loose alternator is stuck in the engine bay and you have tried everything short of prayer to get it out, prepare for bad news. The easiest way to get it out is actually from the bottom and you will need to partially remove the drivers' side axle and let it dangle. pry the axle out of the transmission, as this is easiest (i popped it out with a screwdriver, didn't even need a ball joint separator). You might need to play around with the steering wheel a little bit, but you need to get the axle's shaft completely out of the tranny and pull it aside in order to get enough room to drop the alternator through. I was "lucky" enough to be completely out of tranny fluid, but you will probably get wet here, as the axle acts as a seal for the tranny fluid.

7.) Now that the axle is has been moved aside, removing the alternator is still a little tricky. You'll have to pivot it around a bit in order to get it to fit through. When i finally maneuvered it through, the pully was faced almost directly down. In fact, the pully was the only part of the alternator i was actually touching as I pulled it out.

8.) while gravity is now working against you during the re-installation, it still seemed much easier than the removal. Remember to refill the tranny fluid. The process itself is very easy, but figuring out how to do it is hard. There are many great walkthroughs online if you search, and the entire process can be done in 5 min. You'll need a funnel, and about 3-4 feet of hose to attach to the funnel, as the fill hole is on the side, and your hose will have to bend into an "L" shape. Your battery will probably be dead, so give it a jump and you're good to go. VTEC POWER!