AC quit

[AC]

When I got out of the truck to open the gate last week I noticed a funny noise comming from the front of my truck. After a quick peak under the hood I discovered the compressor on the air conditioner wasn't engaging( the defroster was on ). When I reached in and turned the AC off there was this loud clack.



Two questions,



1. Is it hurting anything to run the air handler in defrost mode with a broken compressor?



2. Is the dealer the best place to take this or can a weekend warrior take this on?



Thanks for the advice,



AC

 

[Evan A. Beck]

It's not a bad job, kind of like changing an alternator. The snag is the refrigerant. You could replace the compressor yourself, and have the AC charged at the dealer, or at an AC shop. Are you 100% sure the compressor is broken?

 

[AC]

All I know is that when I turn the AC on, the compressor isn't kicking on. I can see that the clutch isn't engaging. So I'm thinking that there is some fail safe that's stopping it. Like you say, maybe it's just low on refrigerant. If that is true, and I need to run the defroster to clear off the windshield, am I doing any harm having that compressor clutch spinning.

 

[Brandon]

check for rubbed wire going to ground near top of timing case and top radiator hose. . we had an intermittent problem when truck got hot . . radiator hose under pressure it pushed the compressor clutch wires into the gear case and caused intermittent short... ... . no one could find it xcept me cause when the truck was cold (in shop) the wires werent rubbing... .





check this first... . oh and check fuse for clutch in pdc

 

[Evan A. Beck]

I had a similar problem on my 98. 5, except the compressor ran too much because of low refrigerant. The problem turned out to be a bad low pressure switch on top of the accumulator. Simple fix.

 

[AC]

I took the truck to the dealer for diagnosis. The compressor is bad. That cost me eighty bucks. For them to repair it they estimate $1250 plus tax and refrigerant.

So I did some checking and Napa will sell me the parts for $450 and then I need to have it charged. So that's my plan. I'll let you know how it goes...

AC