I am putting together a stereo system for my 2004 Honda Civic LX. I'll be running 3 Alpine amps ( Alpine MRV-T420 X 2 & Alpine MRD-M1000 X 1 ) which will be powering 2 sets of alpine component speakers ( Alpine SPX-F17T X 1 & Alpine SPX-137A X 1) and a sealed tri-face plexi-glass box with 3 Alpine SWR-1241D DVC subs which are wired to run at 1 Ohm. I was thinking about maybe entering a beginner car audio competitions some time next spring.
I Just went down to buy a blue top optima battery from a local auto electric shop a few days ago and while I was there I was hounded by them about how my car would not be able to power my 3000 watt max system. They claimed that i would need more than the rechargeable optima battery and the 40 Farad competition capacitor that I purchased to handle the power strain. Ive read many things and even experinced what can happen if you dont do thing right when trying to power a system in my old car (fried my alternator).
Their suggestion was to either A.) Put in a New alternator with higher amps, B.) wire the battery optima battery in my trunk, leave the current battery under the hood and run a second line from the alternator back to my second battery and use a power solenoid (to prevent the starter battery from being drained and alternator being stressed.. not sure how that works??) or C.) which i saw on ( http://www.caraudiomag.com/technical/0206cae_alternator/index.html )which would be add a second alternator in with the first and run a totally seperate power system specifically for the stereo system.
Here is the big brick wall... I have a bumper-to-bumper warranty on my car for 6yr/60k miles. It covers the engine, transmission, ELECTRICAL, etc. If i replace or remove the alternator it voids the warranty for the ENTIRE electrical system. Not good.
If you have a thorough knowledge of car electrical systems please, by all means speak!
You will need to upgrade the Alternator. That Battery and cap are just band aids. You should talk to the dealer and see if they can install a new alternator without voiding the warranty.