Why does my altinator get so hot

yes it is fixable! go to the junkyard and find another 03 explorer and cut out the harness so you have enuff length to replace what you cut off on yours. match the colored wires together slide on a piece of shrink tubing and make a y on each wire and twist together slide shrink tubing over the connection heat the tubing to seal it and you will be up and running in no time!

look for any bare or exposed wires, use a multimeter to find shorts.

Hello there,
To replace the alternator in your car:
Open the Escape's hood, and examine the belt-routing diagram on the fan shroud. This will show you the location of the alternator and the serpentine belt tensioner.
Pull the serpentine belt tensioner away from the serpentine belt with the serpentine belt tool far enough to allow you to dislodge the belt from the alternator pulley with your other hand.
Unplug the wiring harness from the back of the alternator by hand. Remove the ground harness from the alternator with the socket set.
Unbolt the alternator from the alternator bracket with your socket set. Lift the old alternator out of the bracket by hand.
Compare the old alternator to the replacement alternator before installing the replacement. Make sure they're both physically identical before continuing. If not, take them both to the parts store to match up a proper replacement.
Set the replacement alternator in the alternator bracket by hand. Bolt it in with the socket set. Plug the wiring harness in by hand and bolt the ground harness to the back of the alternator with the socket set.
Install the serpentine belt on the replacement alternator in reverse of how you removed it from the old alternator.
All the best. Elect_Comp

one night my wire harness melted.The next day my wippers wont work,my fan stoped working and my on star sys wont work GM said not there problem.

I had the same problem occur on an 86 model Nissan truck. It was determined that the alternator was overcharging the battery and caused it to get hot to the point it caught fire. Check the alternator to see if it is overcharging. Sorry to know that happened.

it is really up to you. i had a 1988 ford thunderbird 2.3 turbocoupe that caught on fire spontaneously one day and i didn't replace the wiring harness but i did have an electrician repair the harness and it worked fine. but i can see why you would want to if you could afford the new wiring harness. i know that for my thunderbird it was about $300 for the main harness.

Has anyone tested amperage output and draw on that cable? While running and while starting? With all accessories on etc? Perhaps a heavier gauge cable would be recommended, and/or at least an inline fuse, to avoid fire.

THE POWERSTROKE IS WHOLE DIFFERENT ENGINE THAN THE NON TURBO 7.3..

check your dash harness

I'm going to give you a website addy, if you go here the guys on here will definitely be able to help you. Its a group I'm a member of from Nova Scotia all these guys do is fix, repair and specially mod vdubs you will get your answer there for sure dude. Good luck

http://www.customobsessions.com/index.php

just copy and paste that in your browser.