2006 Mazda5 Alternator Replace How-To

RazorSmith

Member
:
2006 Mazda 5 Touring
Hello everyone. Just replaced alternator in 2006 Mazda5. Since the online info world sucks for Mazda5 How-to's I figured I would post here for anyone wanting to do this. Very easy and straight forward. Minimal tools needed and should not take long for anyone that likes to work on things themselves. If you don't feel comfortable or are not used to working on your own car, take it to a mechanic. You assume all risks in doing this yourself. I have some pictures but I do not have them labeled. I may try to do that and add them back into this thread.

Tools:

14mm wrench/socket
12mm wrench/socket
10mm wrench/socket
small flathead scewdriver
**floor jack
**wheel chocks

**=optional but helpful
all references to direction is assuming you are standing in front of vehicle looking toward windshield. Left is passenger side, right is driver side, front is front of car, back is toward back.
Getting to Alternator and belts:

  1. Lock parking brake and chock the back wheels. Overkill yes but I have kids that like to 'help' so better safe than sorry.
  2. Use jack to lift up the passenger front of the car. Enough to get the wheel off ground gave me enough room to get under the engine.
  3. Using 10mm wrench or socket disconnect negative battery cable.
  4. Pull off plastic engine cover. (you may get away without this but it made it easier for me) Cover is held by 3 points. Pull on both corners nearest windshield and in the center of the cover closer to radiator. Should pop right off. IMG_0983.JPGIMG_0984.JPGIMG_0985.JPGIMG_0986.JPGIMG_0987.JPG
  5. Pull off plastic bottom cover/skid cover. My 5 does not have this anymore so I do not have instructions on this. This is just plastic tabs so be careful taking them off to not break them.
  6. Before you do anything else, take your phone and take a picture of the belt positioning and how it goes around each pulley. Or get a piece of paper and draw it out.
  7. Using a 14mm wrench/socket you will need to loosen the tension on the tension pulley on left side of engine. (This is maybe a 3" pulley for size reference.) Set socket to loosen and push pulley from front to back. Belt should loosen and you should be able to remove from pulley. Watch your fingers. Let the belt drop and don't worry about the bottom belt for the A/C.

If you need to replace the belt then you need to remove the A/C belt. I did not do this but my understanding is that the AC belt is a friction belt that you have to stretch over the pulleys. There is not a tension pulley. So you have to get the old A/C belt off, take off the old serpentine, then replace both. Put on the new serpentine, the stretch the new A/C belt over the 2 pulleys. My was fine.

Removing Alternator:

  1. There are '4' 12mm bolts that hold on the alternator. Bolt #1 is accessible from the topside of the engine. The head points toward the radiator. The other 3 may be accessible from the top if your hands are small enough. Mine are not. Loosen the top bolt almost all the way out. Leave it in so that when you take out the remaining bolts it does not fall. If you are by yourself take it out and be careful when you remove the rest so that it does not fall on your head. If you have a helper here it is easier.
  2. Crawl under and you will see bolts #2 & bolt #3 parallel to each other on the bottom of the alternator. If you look on the side closest to the engine above one of the bolts you will see bolt #4 tucked away above it. I had to use a socket with a reach bar for this one. There is not a lot of wiggle room to loosen or tighten this one. Be patient and it will come out/tighten. Take out the bolts #2 and #3, then do instruction 3&4 below for the wire connections, then take out bolt #4 on bottom side.
  3. While you are under there you will see 2 wire connections. One looks like a round bulb, the other just like a plug. The round plug opens up and inside of it is another 12mm bolt. This one came off pretty easily. Push it aside.
  4. The 2nd is a little tricky. The side of the plug that you can access is a plastic spring clip. Take the small flathead screwdriver and push in the tab and remove the plug.
  5. If you have that helper then you can support the alternator from the bottom and have them remove bolt #1 and you can lower the alternator and take out. If you do not have the helper then you can take out #1 before crawling under. I like having everything lose and I had a helper so I chose that route.
  6. Important to note that bolts #1 and #4 are both shorter than #3 & #4. If you get to putting them back in and they either don't catch or you have an extra 1" of bolt sticking out, you probably have the wrong bolt.

Replacing Alternator:
  1. Crawl under and place alternator in correct mounting holes. You will notice a shoulder on one of the mounting holes on the alternator. This helps to line it up. Put that bolt in 1st. This is one of the longer bolts #2 or #3. Don't tighten all the way, just get the bolt started plus some. Then put in the other longer bolt again just enough to get started plus some. You should have bolts #2 & #3 in but not tightened. Then put bolt #4 in again just enough to get it started plus some.
  2. Now crawl out or have your helper put in bolt #1. Go ahead and put this one in till it snugs up. Then go and tighten bolts #2-4 to snug. Now begin tightening evenly working through all bolts until tight.
  3. Push back in the electrical plug. use the 12mm wrench to attach the wire back to the alternator. Close the cover over the bolt.
  4. Now put the belt back on. Use the diagram you drew or took a picture off and put on the belt. Use the 14mm socket/wrench to push tension pulley toward back of car until belt slips over into place. Make sure that the belt is seated in the grooves properly on the 3 pulleys that the belt goes around.
  5. Replace the skid plate on bottom, and the engine cover up top.
  6. Replace ground wire on battery.
  7. Start the car up using the idle learn feature that davicho uses in this thread.
  8. Once car is started and idling, drop jack, remove wheel chocks, and go for a drive.


Good luck and i hope this helps someone!!
darren
 
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