Alternator Questions

[Volvo_S80]

Hello all, I'm Buying a system little by little for a spring install I have an MS-8 along with a ZED Leviathan III I was thinking something like a AMPERE AUDIO AA-3800.1 or something along those lines My plan was to wire 1 sub to 2 Ohm so i wouldn't have to upgrade my alternator right away. But aware that i will have to eventually I looked into some options I started with Singer who told me he wouldn't be able to offer an Alternator because I have a Cog pulley So I tried somewhere else who told me that they can do a 270 Amp alternator He told me that it will do 150 at idle and my alternator currently does 130ish at idle so it wouldn't be a big Improvement (His words). So my question would this be good enough for that kind of power? Also I want to get a new battery under the hood and don't know where to start. This is a daily driver and I plan to pound about and hour a day mostly Highway driving

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[VWBobby 10+ year member]

If you are driving down the highway, you will probably be at 2000 - 3000+ RPM anyway, putting you out of the "idle" range of 130 or 150 amps. You would probably be putting out 130 amps stock (max, 2500+ RPM) and the aftermarket alternator would be 150 @ idle, and 270 when cruising down the highway.

If the 270 alt is the only one available for your vehicle, you will have to live with it. Otherwise, you could have something truly custom (big $$$) or run multiple cheaper alternators, if you have the space available. If this is for a Volvo, you probably only have the room for 1 alt.

 

[Volvo_S80]

Yea its not very spacious under the hood and I'm not willing to go big $$$ with a custom job. It seems 270 is my only option but I'll keep looking. Should I look into less power? I'm not fully committed to a sub/amp setup yet that's what I'm working on now. I was thinking DC subs with 3500-4000 watts I want a ground pounder. Also are XS batteries ok to use under the hood as my only battery?