1994 Ford Taurus Replacing Air Compressor Pulley

Why don't you just replace the a/c clutch assembly. Parts cost should be under $100. It can be change by removing the RF wheel and inner fender liner. Remove the belt and go to it. You do not need to remove the compressor or discharge the system to do this. Have you not inquired as to the cost of simply replacing the clutch. This job can be done in about an hour once the car is secured on solid supports to remove the wheel. You will need intermediate mechanical ability and a few tools. Most of the clutches are pulled using a bolt of the correct thread in the center. Follow the instructions in the new part package to replace and adjust.

BTW, this won't be any more trouble than installing an idler pulley in the place of the compressor.

Lugnut

Nearly every time we have replaced an AC clutch, we have soon thereafter replaced the compressor. If the clutch has enough slop to cause noise, then the bearing is already shot and has either left debris in the compressor or caused excessive wear on the compressor driveshaft.

lugnut wrote:

If the owner waits too long and the bearing slips on the nose of the compressor, that will happen. If the bearing has not yet slipped, there is no reason the clutch cannot be replaced with no further problem. In either case, it won't be any more trouble that discharging and removing the compressor to install an idler. If the compressor is shot, he can still disconnect the wire harness and use the compressor as an idler unless he has already waited too long to do anything. In a few cases, I have found no damage beyond a bad bearing and simply replaced the clutch bearing with no further problem. It is a common bearing for under $20.

Lugnut

You do not have to remove the A/C Compressor to replace the clutch. I would estimate an experienced mechanic could do it in less tha 1.2 hours, so figure another $100 to have it replaced.

Ed

But often the face of the pulley is thrashed where the clutch friction plate hits - inspect it carefully, there are likely to be cracks in the webs between the cooling slots. Mine had two out of four broken IIRC.

If one or more of the webs is cracked, replacing the bearing alone is futile - the belt surface half of the pulley is going to come apart from the bearing half eventually and then it WILL take out the nose of the compressor. It ran about $150 new for the complete pulley and a fresh clutch plate.

-->--