Are Ford/Mazda alternators vehicle specific? As near as I can tell the mounting bolts for an Escape and Windstar are the same. My Mazda Tribute's alt. was whining real bad but still working. But I was afraid it would fail during the winter and opted to replace it. I looked a a used 2002 Windstar alt. and the only difference is where the battery wire connects. Could they be interchangeable?