GSX1100 Alternator issues and foibles

[Guest]

Hi folks I was wondering is any of yas had experience with the vicissitudes of the later bikes that had traditional car like alternators.

I am in the process of researching a GSX1100 and knowing Suzuki's penchant for electrical failures I thought someone here might have insights and experience.

The owner says there is an oil leak and that it appears that oil is fouling the alternator. I have looked at the fiche as well as the OEM manual and there are two suspect locations. One is the o-ring for the starter housing where it interfaces with the engine case. Another is a large o-ring that seals the mating surface of the alternator to engine case.

SO this could be as simple as couple of o-rings provide the alternator is not shot due to arcing and dirt contamination ( does dino oil conduct electricity? )

From using the Zedder x-ref I have discovered that the same alternaotr had 35 applications so spares should not be a problem.
Basically anyone that had a Katana or GSXR 88-92 had the same alternator.

[tom203]

The field brushes don't like getting oil on the slip rings as oil is an insulator- this would confuse the built in regulator. You should be able to replace those seals and clean up the oil - and like you said they are very common in any event.Personally, I like this charging setup- honda nighthawks had similar layout .