Quick answer – between £269.99 + VAT and £424.99 + VAT, depending on whether you get a new or reconditioned alternator. We would always recommend paying the extra for a new alternator.
The alternator is a pivotal component of your Volkswagen Golf – without it, your battery won’t be recharged while your engine is running and eventually you’ll turn your car off and it won’t start up again. While VW Golfs are generally well built cars, and their alternators aren’t known as a particular weak spot, but like any other component on your car, it can fail.
In this article we’re going to go through what you might expect to pay to replace an alternator in your Volkswagen Golf in the UK at a local independent garage. This article generally covers VW Golfs from 2011 onwards, but it should be a relatively similar cost to have an older model replaced. However if your Golf is very old, you might not have a choice between a rebuilt or a new alternator and may be forced to go down the reconditioned route, which we discuss later in the article.
Table of Contents
- Check that it’s definitely a problem with your alternator
- Choosing between a remanufactured/rebuilt or new alternator
- Cost to replace a VW Golf alternator in the UK
- Is it worth replacing an alternator?
- Is replacing an alternator easy?
- Can I drive with a faulty alternator?
Check that it’s definitely a problem with your alternator
Firstly, before you start asking a garage to replace your alternator, there’s a simple test you can do to test whether it is actually your alternator that’s going bad. Symptoms of a bad battery and a bad battery are often very similar, and the last thing you want to do is have a good alternator replaced when it’s actually the battery that’s failed. This test will work no matter how old your Golf is or whether it’s petrol or diesel.
Testing for a bad alternator on your VW Golf
- Start the car. If you need to jump start it because you believe the alternator has failed, that’s fine – it won’t affect the results of this test.
- With the car running, switch off the radio, AC, etc.
- Now, disconnect the positive terminal on your battery.
- If the car stops running, you have a bad alternator. If the car continues to run, your battery is bad. It’s that simple!
- If you want to be absolutely sure, hook the positive terminal back up and grab a multimeter. Connect the black cable of the multimeter to the negative terminal and the red cable to the positive terminal. You should measure around 14 volts – a little below or above is normal. Now, turn on the AC, the lights, radio, etc. The voltage should remain at 14 volts. If it drops below 13.5 volts, your alternator is providing reduced electricity supply. If it goes any lower than 12 volts, your alternator has completely stopped working.
It’s important to note that you should never drive too far with a bad alternator – because if your alternator isn’t providing enough electricity to recharge the battery, your battery will eventually run flat. If it does, your engine will stop – and you certainly don’t want this happening on the motorway at 70mph. Only drive your car short distances if you absolutely have to – ideally to a garage to get the alternator replaced.
Other things that point towards a faulty alternator are the battery light on the dashboard, an engine that’s slow to turn over but does eventually start or a clicking noise when you try to start the car. All of these are also symptoms of a faulty battery too, so you really should perform the checks detailed above to be sure that it’s your alternator that’s failing and not the battery.
Choosing between a remanufactured/rebuilt or new alternator
Alternators are one of the few automotive components that can be reconditioned and reused. Many parts cannot – such as tyres, suspension components, etc. However, you should be careful when choosing whether to go with a reconditioned or new alternator as there are pros and cons for each.
Firstly, and most importantly, a rebuilt alternator will cost less – up to 25% to 50% off the cost of a new one from your local motor factors or from the VW dealer themselves. You should also look for a warranty – generally a rebuilt alternator will either just have had the broken parts replaced, but a remanufactured alternator will have been inspected and tested and generally will have a longer warranty.
Typically most garages would recommend fitting a new alternator – primarily due to the fact that it will have a manufacturer’s warranty, and it’s less likely to go wrong. This is certainly what we would recommend as it’s the option more likely to keep you on the road for longer. Unless you’ve got a specific reason to use a rebuilt alternator – for example, your Golf is so old that you are struggling to get new parts, you should stick with a new alternator.
One thing to mention – don’t go for a used alternator from a breakers’ yard or something because you’ll have no idea how many miles were on the car that it was taken from, and no idea when it’s likely to fail. If you’re paying someone else to do the labour, it’s a real false economy to get a used part and pay someone the labour to fit it when it could fail imminently and you have no warranty.
Cost to replace a VW Golf alternator in the UK
In this section we do a deep dive on exactly what it costs to replace the alternator on your VW Golf. As mentioned this applies to 2011 models and newer. We’ve estimated an average of £50 + VAT for labour – and we’re assuming a competent mechanic can have the alternator replaced in no more than two hours. We haven’t included diagnostic charges in this – so if you take your car to the garage and ask them to determine whether the alternator is actually bad or not, they’ll charge you probably around an hour’s labour on top of this to do this check.
Example vehicle: 2015 Volkswagen Golf 2.0 TDi GTD
Cost to purchase a new Bosch alternator (Euro Car Parts): £324.99
Cost to purchase a reconditioned alternator (eBay): £169.99
Labour to fit: £100 + VAT
Total cost to replace the alternator on a VW Golf = between £269.99 + VAT (reconditioned alternator) and £424.99 + VAT (new alternator)
Is it worth replacing an alternator?
So generally, yes – if your alternator is bad it’s worth replacing. It isn’t a hugely expensive part, and it isn’t a lot of labour to remove the old alternator and fit the new one. However, if there’s something else wrong with your car that might be causing the alternator to fail – maybe a coolant or an oil leak that’s dripping onto the alternator and causing it to fail, or possibly one of the plugs partially shorting the alternator and toasting it or something like this, you should get this looked at at the same time as your alternator repair.
Is replacing an alternator easy?
Replacing an alternator on a VW Golf is not a difficult job for a mechanic and is definitely within the ability of a competent home mechanic. A very quick description of how to perform the repair on a 2011 or newer VW Golf is below:
- Disconnect the battery.
- Remove the engine cover.
- Slacken the wheel bolts on the front offside wheel.
- Jack the car up and remove the wheel. Remove the bottom half of the front offside wheel arch liner to expose the crankshaft pulley.
- You will need to move the fuel filter assembly out of the way. Do not disconnect any hoses – unbolt the fuel filter assembly and position it somewhere where there is no strain on any of the hoses and it is not in any danger of falling into the area in which you are working.
- Rotate the tensioner clockwise using a spanner and insert a drill bit to lock the tension off the alternator belt. If you are reusing the belt, mark the direction in which it rotates with tipp-ex or a permanent marker. Slip the belt off the pulleys and store it safely.
- Unplug the cable from the alternator and unscrew the two bolts holding the alternator in place. Give them a gentle tap to release the centering nuts.
- Disconnect the battery positive cable from the alternator terminal. Remove the alternator.
- To install the new alternator, follow the steps above in reverse. For fitting the alternator belt, ensure it will rotate in the direction you marked in step 6. Once you’ve slipped the belt onto the pulleys, release the tensioner with a spanner and take the drill bit out.
Can I drive with a faulty alternator?
Technically yes, but you can’t drive very far. If your alternator isn’t providing any charge to the battery, the battery is the only thing powering the electrics in your car. When your battery runs flat, the car’s engine will stop – which is dangerous if you are on a fast moving road as the steering lock will come on and you will be left without assisted braking. You should only be driving to the nearest garage if your alternator is faulty.
Check out our troubleshooting guide if you’ve recently had a new alternator fitted, but your lights are flickering.
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About the author
Marcus Brown is editor-in-chief of The FatMech and is a mechanic with ten years' experience based in London, UK. Having worked for major dealerships for many years, Marcus now works for a local independent garage and has experience working on nearly every make and model of car. Marcus also has a passion for writing and teaching, which is where the idea for The FatMech came from. In his spare time, Marcus enjoys playing golf, doing home renovations and gardening. He lives just outside London with his wife and son.