Replacing a/c compressor

Jul 15, 2003 2 Replies
D

The a/c compressor on my '89 Cressida died yesterday. I noticed that suddenly it wasn't cooling that well and then it made all kind of godawful noises. I'd like to try and replace it myself and take it somewhere to have them recharge the system. However, I need to find out if it's more complicated than that.



Yeah, yeah, there's a special way you're supposed to evacuate the system to make sure the Feds are happy and that the ozone isn't destroyed and we don't all die. Whatever. Once the compressor gets lunched, is it possible for metallic particles to contaminate the rest of the system? I.e., how likely is it that it's going to require more than simply replacing the compressor?



Thanks!


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N

Not only possible, it's very unlikely that it didn't pump a bunch of aluminum and other muck thru-out.

How likely is it that you want the replacement compressor to last more than a week?

This is precisely why there are flushing procedures, flushing solvents and add on filters to catch any debris that can and will escape the flushing operation.

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J

Before you assume there're metal fragments in your system, determining what failed. If it was either the bearings or clutch, then there will not be any particles to worry about. If the internals of the compressor failed, then you do have to consider metal contaminants. A clutch failure will not require any compressor replacement. Worst case, you'll need the ability to evacuate the system and the replacement parts. Possibly you can flush the system (reverse flow direction) to remove any large particles that could clog the expansion valve.

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