Better would be a relative term in this case.  In my 82 Westy I wanted what we all seem to want, more output from the alternator.  My quick fix was to attempt the swap for the Golf/Jetta/late Vanagon 90 or 120 amp alternator.  Went to the local VW wrecking yard and bought the 90A version without first puling my old one for comparison.  This would be a mistake, as I now have a $60 credit at said wrecking yard.  It seems that while this swap will work between almost all the water cooled VW's, Vanagons included, when you get back to the early air-cooled versions the case is different.  The attachment points are all wrong for the air-cooled motors.
This leaves you with one choice, going to your local starter/alternator rebuilder and having them do a custom rewind job on your current alternator.  The downside is a shorter service life for the alternator.  I have yet to do this, but I have heard of it working for a few others.

Mark
82 Westy

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