I don't have a voltage drain problem. I have a voltage regulation issue.

 

Taurus alt FTW.

I have a Taurus alt, with HID lighting, a mid-level sound system, and various other electrical additions. I never go below 13v even with the heater on.

 

I picked one up. It didn't fit my dual pulley, the post was too larger to the wire and it wouldn't seat correctly on the motor. I bought another pulley and had it machined, but I haven't had time to have it machined to fit the block or swap the wire.

 

Saw my name mentioned by Jackhild59 and thought I'd clear up a couple misconceptions about wiring a Taurus Alternator correctly.

Just so we're clear, there is no better alternator that you can get at any junkyard anywhere in North America for $20 than the 130 Amp Taurus Alternator found on the 3.8L models.

The A Terminal wire goes to an Always Powered device, AKA the battery positive terminal. Putting it on the output stud makes it not account for the voltage drop and resistance in your output cable. Result: lower than optimal output. Solution: Put it on the battery so it sees what the battery is actually doing.

The S Terminal loops back to the Stator. It's the 1/4" Quick Disconnect terminal on the alternator

The I Terminal goes to the Ignition Switched 12V source. Our friend the 6-pin green plug behind the driver's side headlight is a good spot for this. Having this only see 12 volts with the key on makes it so the voltage regulator doesn't drain the battery when the car is not driven.

You will need to replace the pulley with a dual sheave one for FD alternator retrofits. Mine is from Racing Beat, but I'm sure Japan2LA's pulleys will work just as well. It drops right onto the shaft with no fuss. An impact wrench makes this easy, and I shouldn't have to remind you to wear gloves when holding the pulley still while giving it some impact wrench love.

Pretty sure I've covered mounting it in another thread or on Yahoo Answers in the Mazda section. Google will find it.

For your convenience, the diagram Jackhild59 is referring to is in my gallery and I've posted it here:

 

to help clear up confusion:

In regard to usage of the Taurus alternator, do you you need to use the FD dual v-belt pulley or the FC dual v-belt pulley?

 

http://www.mazdatrix.com/b9.htm

#11480 is the one you want. Any pulley for swapping a FD alternator into an earlier car should work fine. If you currently have a FD alternator on the car, use the pulley you already have.