Hey guys...clueless female here!

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oldnotdead06

New member
Howdy all!!! Newbie here.....just bought a 1990 Alltrac that needs some serious TLC. Right off the bat I have to buy an alternator for it, its sitting at the shop now :( But I realize that my best bet is to really learn about these cars and fix shit myself. I am very mechanically inclined so I'm not worried about that. I found the alternator online for 135.00 but the shops want to charge 450.00 to replace! Grrr....i have to pay it for now tho. Anyways, my question to ya'll is....What is the best reference source to learn all about this car, I'm a total virgin when it comes to a turbo-charged car!! Thanks for any advice!! :shoots: Damn mechanics
 
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d1alltrac

Active member
welcome to the club!

i have found that the best place to learn about our cars is right here on alltrac.net, you will learn A LOT from just browsing here. other than here a good way to learn is to read the BGB (toyota service manual). its known as the Big Green Book because it is in fact, a big green book. i know theres a link somewhere but i dont have it in my favorites on this computer....ill try to remember to post a link when i get home (unless someone else beats me to it)
 
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rightrac

New member
PLEASE don't pay someone 450 to replace the alternator! its a 10 minute job! seriously. you are getting robbed
 
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PhilipK

New member
Learn by yourself, it is so much better then getting raped by mechanics. First buying the BGB would be a great start. When I first got my All-Trac two years ago I knew nothing at all about cars. Now I am pulling the engine out with ease, along with a lot of other things, and I still use the BGB every once in a while. About the alternator though, buy one from https://www.1sttoyotaparts.com/partscat.html and put it on yourself, everyone here is very nice and will help you out with anything you need.
 
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omgitsroy326

New member
alternator is really easy for our cars since it's on the top. Any mechanic will look at it and probably charge your less than 100 for labor. In general for normal car a lot of things need to come out in order to get the the alternator.

Alternator isn't that bad for our cars. If you're in the area i'll do it for 10 bucks~

Also the BGB can be downloaded from our site~ good luck~
 
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jprine01

New member
I would buy the BGB, I think its around 50$ or so new.
Otherwise use one that is scanned online.
The BGB is heaps better then haynes or chiltons manuals. As far as a technical manual goes it is the most easy to read easy to understand book I have ever read.

Anyway, get that and it will tell you step by step how to do most anything.

Oh and like the others said, they are really ripping you off with the alternator. I know mechanics rip you off for everything, but seriously at 450$ labor they are charging you like 600$ per hour. It is honestly not even a hour job, it is right on top. I've taken my alternator off like half a dozen times just to get at other parts below it.

You dont even pay a doctor 600$ a hour to do surgery on you. And that is life and death!
 
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d1alltrac

Active member
rightrac":235xvu5m said:
PLEASE don't pay someone 450 to replace the alternator! its a 10 minute job! seriously. you are getting robbed
Click to expand...

:doh: oh yeah, i was gonna mention that too but i forgot
 
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oldnotdead06

New member
Thanks for all the great advice....first thing, get ahold of the big green bible. When I bought the car, right from the sellers house I went to the mechanic she said had worked on it before and knew its issues. She made it sound like all they had to do was change out the alternator to the right one cuz other mechanics had been putting in non-turbo alternators. She was even more clueless than me!!! So now, after 2 days the guy is telling me there were some issues with some wiring to the alternator that only had a temporary fix on them. Grrrrr!! So the drama continues....I may have to pay the ransom cuz I believe this job is way too much to hande for a first-timer!!
 
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PhilipK

New member
There are only two wires coming from the alternator. The alternator lead wire(big black connector) and alternator wire(small metal connector with a bolt through it). Then there are three connectors that are secured on the alternator which have nothing to do with its function. So if those two connectors are not tampered with then you are fine. This is why no one touches my car, I always see mechanics do crazy fixes like this.
 
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AlltracAvenger

Member
Hm.... here's where I found the '90 ST185 book...

http://www.celicatech.com/imagearchive/ ... ac_bgb.php

And, I second the opinion of doing the alternator yourself... if you really want to start doing lots of work to this car, save up and get some decent tools. Far better of an investment than paying a mechanic lots of money to do even the simplest of things. But, as far as the alternator goes... easy as pie. I knew absolutely nothing about cars when I bought mine... now, stuff like a turbo replacement(with practice, you can get the turbo off in an hour or less) doesn't bother me that bad.
 
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GMan

New member
> oldnotdead06
> Newbie
> Joined: 14 Feb 2006

What a day to join, Valentine's Day ;-)

> Posted: Tue Feb 14, 2006 7:25 am
> Post subject: Hey guys...clueless female here!

We were all clueless at one time.

I'd say buy the manuals, if you can.
http://www.alltrac.net/reference/
The onlines are good, but you may be away from
a computer when something breaks ? :)

Is there a groups of lady AT or Celica owners ?
There is a growing number of you here, even if You
do not post as often.

not much in the way of woman racers, that I can find...

http://www.girliegirlracing.com/shop/default.asp

http://www.quickchickracing.com/

http://www.fcarmr.com/Track%20Fun%202005.htm
" Typically Quick Chick Racing has only two Colorado events,
but these are two-day or even three-day events. Unlike CECA,
QCR holds its events at Pikes Peak International Raceway, combining
part of the banked oval with the interior road course. "

http://www.quickchick.com/

Regards;
 
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oldnotdead06

New member
Yes, what a great day to join.....Valentines Day haha...I didnt pay attention to that. Anyways, I work graveyard shift so I have plenty of time to print out the manual. Thanks for the link to the scanned copy. I'm just printing my little heart out right now haha. Funny thing is I'm getting paid while I do it!
I think I'm gunna have to go Rambo stlye and get my damn car back. It's supposed to snow here the next couple of days, perfect time to let it loose in the snow. It drives, just drains the battery fast. Are there other females in this particular group. You guys are really nice tho. I think if I hadnt found this site, I probably would feel really crappy about my purchase and just sold it off. I'm sure ya'll will be hearing alot from me! Hav a great day :smokes:
 
___Scott___

___Scott___

Active member
GMan":2s9wek4x said:
QCR holds its events at Pikes Peak International Raceway, combining part of the banked oval with the interior road course. "
Click to expand...
Not anymore.

PPIR was bought out and shut down to eliminate the competition for a proposed new track closer to Denver.

Regarding the alternator, I bought a cheap lifetime guaranteed replacement from Checker Auto Parts and I replace it about every year and a half when it dies. It's such a simple job that I don't mind replacing it often, and Checker has always been happy to hand over a new one.
 
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SuperWhite92

New member
oldnotdead06":1hkl96hk said:
Yes, what a great day to join.....Valentines Day haha...I didnt pay attention to that. Anyways, I work graveyard shift so I have plenty of time to print out the manual. Thanks for the link to the scanned copy. I'm just printing my little heart out right now haha. Funny thing is I'm getting paid while I do it!
I think I'm gunna have to go Rambo stlye and get my damn car back. It's supposed to snow here the next couple of days, perfect time to let it loose in the snow. It drives, just drains the battery fast. Are there other females in this particular group. You guys are really nice tho. I think if I hadnt found this site, I probably would feel really crappy about my purchase and just sold it off. I'm sure ya'll will be hearing alot from me! Hav a great day :smokes:
Click to expand...

Let one of us fellow coloradoans know. I'm sure one of us would make the trip over to where you live to help for a few hours.
 
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