Yup that's what they call them. Who knows what they are actually capable of. Only way to know is to load test it at increasing rpm. I picked up a VAT40 last year but the meters aren't reading right. Not in a position to trouble shoot it. :(
Yea I had to buy an alt from Carquest some time back when the one I just had 'rebuilt' by a local guy crapped out an hour into a 6 hour drive home. All a crap shoot. The one from carquest later ended up needing a new stator. That may have been in part because I had to use it for charging a very low battery. Sucky situation where having the ammeter was very helpful. Anyway. If you have a squareback you can replace almost everything with basic tools and no soldering is needed.