Alternator replacement

Good evening,

That is inaccurate information. The alternator is not a module and does not require any programming at all. It is a plug and play.

Roy

That is not true of generators. Reprogramming computers is a trick dreamed up by GM to force you to go to the dealer for a lot of repairs, and most other manufacturers copied this customer-unfriendly business practice. You need to find a different mechanic. As proof, if this was true, your replacement generator would not have worked at all.

There'are two bigger concerns. The first is there is a pretty good chance the generator is not the cause of the problem. The symptoms you described are not likely to be exactly the same with two different generators, and it is much more common to find corroded connector terminals or other wiring problems. I recently helped a fellow with a Kia who ended up finding three corroded wires, then he learned this is a common problem on this brand.

The second problem has to do with you buying the part, then asking someone else to install it. That's like bringing your own food to a restaurant and asking them to cook it for you. Who is to blame if you don't like how it tastes?

When the shop orders the parts, they assume the responsibility of getting the right parts, getting defective parts replaced, and they have to do the job over for free if a new part fails under its warranty. When you supply the parts, you take on all that responsibility. If the problem occurs for the third time, you can be expected to pay for any replacement parts and the labor again. The shop did what you asked them to do, which was to bolt on the new parts. They have no involvement in whether the parts are of good quality, are working properly, or even if they solve the problem. They didn't diagnose the cause of the problem either, but we sure like to blame them when the repair doesn't solve it.

This doesn't apply in special situations. The most common is when the needed part is no longer available through normal channels. Someone at the shop has to use a lot of time and resources searching for the part, and you're going to pay for that time in some way. To save you money, they may ask you to locate the item, but it should be agreed to and understood ahead of time how warranties or defective parts will be handled.