Hello all, I would like to clear up some of the confusion and incorrect information about USAlternators.
I am Dan, the owner of USAlterntors.
A few years ago, 2012 to be exact, I was in the market for a high output alternator. I had a mercedes benz so options were fairly limited. I opted for a 390XP from a competitor. I was super excited. i paid them, all was good to go, then 1 month after I had paid them, I was told they couldn't do one for my vehicle for one reason or another. I was hesitant before my purchase since I had heard stories of people waiting up to 6 months+ to receive their unit.
Being an electrical engineer at the University of Michigan at the time, I had learned all about power generation since my plan was to go into utility power generation when I graduated. So I decided it couldn't be that hard to produce a smaller scale generation unit for the car.
As a dbdrag and iasca competitor who achieved 153 sealed legal on the dash out of my trunk car, I naturally always wanted the best for myself and my car, I set out in search of the best parts to build an alternator with. It took me months to learn about and find the best parts.
In late 2012, I finally had found a manufacturer that has been in business since the early 1900s, that not only stocked great parts but also could make custom parts to my specification. The engineers there are very smart and are awesome to work with when designing specific components that will last!
And so the prototype for USAlternators began to be constructed. It was built and tested. It was good, but we could do better.
I didn't want to rush to market with a poor product just to make a quick buck that would leave me with a ton of warranty claims and angry customer as some "companies" have done in the past.
The next prototype came a year later after heavy use in one of my daily drivers. this one can be found on my USAlternators youtube page. upload date is when I created the youtube account, and not the actual date of production just FYI.
I AM CAPITALIZING THIS BECAUSE THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT!!!! I have always hated amplifier companies that rated their amplifiers at 4000W Max. I know you all love to hear about people who go around boasting about their 5000 watt BOSS amp. but we all know it actually doesn't do 5000 Watts rms.
So with alternators, why are you all satisfied to be sold on a MAX COLD Rating from some of the other companies?
AT USAlternators ALL OF OUR ALTERNATORS ARE RATED HOT!!!!!! This rated amperage is what you will be seeing all day hot or cold, rain or shine. If I were to lie to you all, I would rate my alternator, 270-290 amps MAX Cold. But I am here to advertise "rms" rated power not MAX power.
For a lot of our components, we use OEM denso parts. They are the best and most reliable in the business. They are much harder to get than you think. You can not just go to ASP wholesale or the other online guys and buy OEM NEW PARTS. Although they may advertise NEW Denso, I encourage you to order the parts and see what you actually get. I did that for myself because I was curious if it was that easy to get OEM parts. Long story short, it is not that easy.
For a few other things such as our custom housing, Custom rectifier and custom wound rotors, we design them stateside to meet or exceed OEM specs. You can see that we are the only company that offers up to 3 output posts.
Next Id like to clear a few things that some members here have commented about.
1. WE Try NOT to SELL SMALL CASE UNITS. All prices that you are quoted for are large case hairpins unless otherwise stated. Most other manufacturers are selling you small case hairpins for the 500 dollar range and you are not comparing apples to apples. When you get these quotes make sure to ask what you are getting because if you don't, you'll end up with a modded small case that gets very HOT! Not to say they aren't good. Because they will work, but its NOT the BEST and if you are paying 500+ you should be getting the best and the most for your money.
2. The next thing id like to address is the member on this car audio forum. That member, obtech audio, on here was the very first official production model customer. I had a few units that wern't officially branded sold, but this guy was the first Official customer that had requested a quote. He got a deal because he was willing to buy my first production unit, and take professional pictures of it for my website. You'll notice he lives in utah where as I am from Michigan.
3. I am working on a budget friendly version for those of you who want the best but still have a family, or anything that does not allow you to get all the goodies. These units will be uncolored and sit as our base unit.
4. I WOULD ALSO LIKE TO MAKE IT CLEAR, USAlternators, uses ONLY BRAND NEW PARTS. some places are selling you painted remans (remanufactured unit, aka used parts). I proved that to the OP by showing him one of our new units next to a painted reman. You could not tell the difference. So for those of you seeking an even cheaper option, I have the ability to make a reman unit with same parts as my new unite. These still come with a limted warranty that we can discuss if you purchase. These units are usually just r and d units I have that I cant sell as new because I tested a new regulator or rotor on them. Once again, I am here with the customer in mind!
5. Yes I compared my units to DC Power. I believe they also make a great unit using OEM Denso parts. So I wanted to show the similarities between my unit and theirs. And also I believe I made small upgrades which makes my alternator a better unit.
Lets look at the DC Pricing to compare it to mine.
it looks like this basic unit is 625 after shipping from them.
it looks like this basic unit is 625 after shipping from them.
now lets look at the specs. We see that it is rated cold. and it is rated at 250 HOT. exactly the same as usalternators.
we also use 12 70A High voltage diodes instead of 45 amp low voltage diodes.
and youll notice our through bolts to hold the unit together come in from the front and screw into the back. All other competitors through bolts come in from the back and screw into the front.
also although my case looks stock its actually custom made to push air in through front and through rotor and out the back to cool regulator. notice how my through bolts come from front . all other unit come in through rear first
here are a few videos of what we have so far. I know you guys like head to head comparison, and those videos will be coming. In the mean time this is what we have! Not many companies show off the internals. Why? because they probably dont look as pretty after they have been used before
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_MQv0Kag0o