Preemptive alternator replacement?

2girlsdad

Joined: Aug 20, 2016

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At 160k miles on my Tundra, the alternator went out this week (which was a fiasco!). It got me thinking, my wife's 2014 4Runner has 200k miles, and we use it for long road trips (Houston to Gulf Shores in May and Colorado again in December). Is it a good idea to go ahead and replace it before either trip, especially before the winter Colorado trip? Feels we are in the window for it to start falling.

80085

Joined: Sep 13, 2004

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6:59a, 2/4/26

AG

Id only preemptive replace if you put a new OEM alt in its place

brushes wear so replacement fixes that, but aftermarket regulators are a gamble and you could end up with something less reliable than what you got

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BrazosDog02

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8:44a, 2/4/26

AG

The Alternator on my F150 went out at 22 years and 452,000 miles.

No. Do not replace stuff that isn't broken. I had my OEM rebuilt by a good shop. No way I'd put oreilly specials in it.

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fixer

Joined: Aug 21, 2005

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9:05a, 2/4/26

Either oem or take to an alternator shop.

BiggiesLX

Joined: Oct 11, 2023

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10:21p, 2/4/26

Brushes are cheap and easy to swap. If you want to replace the drive belt as well you can knock both out.

Naveronski

Joined: Apr 29, 2008

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10:28p, 2/4/26

AG

I have a 2014 Tacoma (same 4.0 V6 as yours) with 234k and original alternator still going strong.

You could buy a OEM spare and keep it as backup if you want peace of mind, but tbh I haven't seen many people posting about needing a replacement.

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