370 Amp XP Series Alternator for 6.0L

[Ketcham]

Greetings Everyone,

It has been some time since I have posted on this forum. Last year has been busy for me after my SMB rebuild. I now have some time to re-address this issue I have and wanted to see if anyone here may be able to diagnose or resolve the issue.

I have a 2010 6.0 PSD. It was one of the last Ford made. Because of this my best guess is the internal computer was programmed somewhat different. It was difficult to get a strategy to work but was successful after much effort. The Edge Insight was another challenge were I eventually placed independent monitor I needed, those which most take for granted. So in essence, my van is one odd duck.

My 270A XP DC Power alternator went out and I replaced it with the 370A XP version sold by ED at FICM Repair. When we installed the 370A XP the battery icon appeared on the dash computer. The Alternator put out amperage and seemed to work fine. I ran it on a 2 week trip without issue. We then sent the alternator to DC Power who bench tested it and the 14.2V regulator. It tested fine. Meanwhile the 270A XP was repaired and I used this the last year. the 370A sat at my mechanic's shop and was dropped into a F350 6.0 and there is no issue.

ED at FICM has been exceedingly helpful and more than patient with my endeavor. Even he is stumped. My mechanic is stumped. His buddy who serviced a fleet of ambulances ran the high output alternators and ignored the battery icon.

Why is there a fault code triggering the battery? BTW, there is no engine code/engine light.

I would like to install the 370A and get it running, especially since I am going to remove my 2 x 4D batteries and replaced with 12 Lipo-Phos cells set up as 3 x 12V. They in total will be 1/4 the size and 4x the power. Each cell is 200 Ah x 3V. (But this an entirely different topic that I will cover once built and setup).

Appreciate any and all insight.

Kind Regards,

-j

[Ketcham]

I am bumping my query. I have been using my 270A alternator and this other alternator was over $1000 investment. I would like to get the 370A working. Has anyone used this alternator, have an issue and found a solution or recommend as solution?

BTW - my engine rebuild had a cracked cylinder head that flex tested negative. When hot would expand a crack and over pressurize the coolant system. So a second engine pull and rebuild at 34K miles. No tune added. Better just replacing both heads and avoid my headache.

Thanks!

John.

[JoeH]

Sorry to hear about your issues. It's odd that the 370XP works in the truck and not the van but there is a difference between the E series and the F series. On the trucks the alternator is PCM controlled.

I did have an issue when I installed the 250XP from DC Power. There's a crucial wire that reports back to the alternator about the voltage it's putting out. The OEM alternator doesn't really put out enough amps on our rigs, or on a 6.0 for that matter, so it's always working overtime. What happens is that wire gets more and more resistant to voltage and then the alternator thinks that it's not putting out enough voltage so it compensates for the bad wire. That kills the alternator. The wire is for the regulator power for the stock alternator. (Lots of current through a small wire for a long period of time = heat. Excessive heat = damaged wire = added resistance). Maybe this is not an issue for the trucks since the PCM is doing the work that the regulator is doing on the E series? At any rate, the end result is it can create issues with a higher amp alternator on a proper voltage feedback.

As for heads, the 6.0 is known for cracked heads. The walls are thin. If it happens to me I will either go with Kill Devil heads that are a new heavy duty casting https://kcturbos.net/collections/new...cylinder-heads
Or, o-ringed heads from UCF machine. https://store.ucfmachineshop.com/sho...-stroke-diesel

[Ketcham]

Did you run a higher gauge wire to prevent this issue.

I burn through alternators. 18 months max.

Then a rebuild.

How did you resolve your issue?

Best,

John.

[JoeH]

Ya know to be honest I'm not entirely sure whether my mechanic replaced the wire on the harness where it plugs into the factor plug or simply bypassed it. I can ask but it took care of the bias voltage.

[Bbasso]

I've got to ask, why such a huge alt?