ScorpiA

Is there any side effects that might happen if i just completely bypass the ac? I was told by the mechanic that my clutch on my ac had broken and had metal pieces come off and might be in the compressor resulting in it seizing? Theres a back story that will be posted below, but my main concern is not trying to buy belts for the PS/AC pulleys constantly, as i was told with the messed up clutch it might mess up every belt it comes in contact with.

So, the question is. How do i disconnect the AC and make sure the clutch is disengaged and will let the pulley move freely?



Back story -

My ac would blow cold air after about 10 min of driving at decent speed (45-60), then after about 15-20 min of cold would stop and blow warm/hot air depending on the amount of time driving (after awhile i turned it off after it warmed cuz its 90+ degrees outside), and i decided to get it recharged. Took it to a mechanic and he said he thinks the compressor maybe damaged and he recharged the system and added oil to the compressor. That he ran the car for an hour and it blew cold air the whole time. Cool, but when i picked up the car, i turned the car on and heard squealing. The AC was on high and max fan. When i say squealing, i mean like, high pitched, garble and screeching. I left it running and walked back to the mechanic. At this point 2 other mechanics came outside to SEE what was making the noise. Seriously. And the mechanic told me that thats fine and it is because the compressor is damaged and the oil is making it run better. Well, this in my head didn't make sense, because firstly, my compressor NEVER made noises, at all. Not even a belt squeal when turned on. So I say okay and drive my car back to my house (1 hour away, i moved and was in the area and dropped it off), and the whole way, the compressor sounds like its garbling, squealing, and worse even my car was SURGING while the ac was on, the moment it was turned off, normal driving experience returned. I brush it off and say i will call him on monday (This was last friday Aug. 10th) and wasn't planning on driving much during the weekend. I will admit, the ac was cold though. no warm spot, but it never stopped making noise. I then drove it on sunday back to the area i got the mechanical work done, and upon returning towards my home later in the day (roughly 6-7ish hours car sat without being run), and about 30min into the drive home, AC went to hot and PS was lost. Great. Its mostly highway but still it was a unexpected pain. Parked the car at home and found the AC/PS belt had snapped.
I replaced the belt, and tried the ac while idling, nothing but hot air. Kept the AC off and drive it for one day. It broke the next day after i installed it, replaced it again, (Thank God advanced aut0 replaced it no questions )and again replaced it. Took it to a DIFFERENT mechanic and sent it in as a AC/Heat system eval. And came back with a clutch issue that sent metal shards into the compressor/dryer/everryything ac related. They won't replace just the compressor (cuz clutch comes with) because of the metal shards that supposedly are still in the system and all hoses and stuff need replaced to prevent a repeat occurrence.

If you read the story, do you even think that is reasonable? I mean, is it really possible that the WHOLE system needs to be replaced? I also noticed i hear a click when its engaged still? Anything going wrong that i really am missing?

Ellimist55

The answer is yes when the compressor goes bad it does sent bits of metal all through the system. You need th replace the compressor reciever/drier and the condensser. The evaporator should be fine because the r/d should have stopped any metal that made it to it because the r/d has a filter in it . You shouldnt have to replace the hoses either just have them and the evaperator flushed. It sounds like the compressor is completely locked up you can check by removing the belt and try turning the pulley on the comp. If it doesnt spin freely you will just keep breaking belts. I it doesnt spin there isnt really a way to unsieze it. You can remove it and still have your power steering work you will need a smaller belt though. Just take a string rap it around the pulleys till it makes a circle and have the parts store find one thats around that size. If you do remove the compressor know that if is very illegal to vent refrigerant i mean very illegal so take it somewhere and have them recover the system first.

On a side note it sounds like who ever did the work the first time when they added oil to the system probably added to much and thats what caused the compresor to sieze. I cant say for sure of course but unless you had a leak there should have been no need to add oil to the system. hope this helped

ScorpiA

Hey thanks for responding, I had a feeling when i started the car up from the first mechanic that he did something wrong, or even worse, added the oil but messed with the magnetic gap on the clutch, to "check if it was okay", and that resulted in it not disengaging i bet. Either way, **** happens. But i think if the AC is off, it spins freely, but when its on i can hear the belt squeal. Although i do hear some squealing when i turn my car on (AC off) and i have to drive out of parking space, park, turn on the ac, rev the engine and turn off the AC, and turn the car off and then it starts with no squealing, and doesn't make a noise from the belts after, but if i don't do that, it sounds like I'm driving around with low power steering oil and your trying to make a reeeeaaallly tight turn.. hahaha...

So i assume just disconnect the wire running from the PS up to the AC and leave it be? I do have a HVAC guy who when i explained all this said he would do it, (he's certified or w/e) so i might just take it out. Will that create any extra strain on the PS or Crankshaft if the ac isn't connected but the pulley rolls freely?

Sairo

Hi there.
I have the same AC problem too. The only difference is that I haven't consulted a AC mechanic as of today. I am a little bit afraid I get rip off the prices and parts. That's why I am searching some ideas about AC problem.
Does your problem solved already?