Replacing Alternator Pulley In-Car – List of VW Models & Difficulty

A3 Jetta TDI, B4 Passat TDI, B5.5 Passat TDI, Mk4 Jetta/Golf/New Beetle TDI, Mk5 Jetta TDI 2005.5-2006, Mk5 Jetta TDI 2009-2010, Mk6 Jetta/Golf/Sportwagen TDI, Mk7 Golf & Golf Wagon, NMS Passat TDI 2012+, Technical & How-Tos

July 9, 2018

Replacing an alternator pulley without removing the alternator requires skill, the right tools and a cooperative engine bay design. We’ve compiled a list of VW diesels that we work on and listed how difficult it is to replace the pulley with the alternator still installed in the vehicle.

Tools

Getting the right tool is vital to this job. If you have the wrong tool you might not be able to remove the pulley at all, never mind with the alternator still on the car. We recommend the Serrated Alternator Pulley Bit Set from Metalnerd which is a low-clearance design to assist in on-vehicle replacement of the pulley. The Metalnerd tool comes with two inner bits, one for 6 point and one for 8 point alternator shafts.

Volkswagen

B4 Passat TDI / Mk3 Jetta TDI
- Difficulty: Medium
Mk4 Jetta/Golf TDI w/ ALH Engine
- Difficulty: Hard, removing alternator recommended.
New Beetle TDI w/ ALH Engine
- Difficulty: Nearly Impossible, removing alternator required
Mk4 Jetta/Golf/New Beetle TDI w/ BEW Engine
- Difficulty: Easy, alternator located at top of engine and pulley faces front with no tool interference
Mk5 Jetta TDI w/ BRM Engine
- Difficulty: Medium, requires removing upper intercooler pipe, very tight working area
B5.5 Passast TDI w/ BHW Engine
- Difficulty: Medium, alternator located at front of engine and faces front, clearance is tight and cooling fan must be removed
Mk5/6 Jetta/Golf/Beetle TDI w/ 2.0 CBEA/CJAA Engine
- Difficulty: Hard, alternator not easy to access, very little clearance, removing alternator recommended
NMS Passat TDI w/ CKRA Engine
- Difficulty: Hard, alternator not easy to access, very little clearance, removing alternator recommended
EA288 Series TDI – CRUA/CVCA in 2015+ TDIs
- Difficulty: Nearly Impossible, removing alternator required

One response to “Replacing Alternator Pulley In-Car – List of VW Models & Difficulty”

Clutched Alternator Pulleys are Important! – Diesel News, Info and Guides

July 9, 2018 at 6:42 pm

[…] Replacing the pulley with the alternator still installed can be challenging and may be impossible on some models. Therefore, most shops we work with find removing the alternator and replacing the pulley with the alternator on their workbench actually takes less time than trying to do it on the car. For our TDI owners, the ALH engine makes swapping the pulley very difficult as the alternator is sandwiched deep in the engine bay. Meanwhile, the BEW engine (on the same chassis) is the easies as the alternator is located at the top of the engine. See our list of Replacing Alternator Pulley In-Car – List of VW Models and Difficulty. […]

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