AC Compressor woes....

[Dozer11B]

Well I took my XJ ('95 Country with the HO) in to Firestone to get some fluids replaced and get a good once over on it. I just got into town and don't have my tools (or a place to work on it for that matter) until I close on my house and my stuff gets shipped in from Germany or else I would have done a lot of it myself. After getting gouged or labor, they find that my AC compressor plate as been JB welded to the clutch, and want to charge me $800-$1000 to replace it. Photos:

The AC blows cold, but as you can see, the JB weld has cracked. The clutch does not spin at first, then it will kick in. I mistook this for the alternator at first since that was the location of my alternator in both my Ramchargers. It has only squealed on me once in the past four days, and I just drove it 163 miles to get to Ft. Campbell, which is where I'll be stationed. I have driven it daily in the last four days without much of a problem, and nice, cool AC.

After using my handy dandy advanced search, it seems I can just remove the fuse for the "blower motor" (as stated in my manual) and be fine- without AC. Problem is I have three kids that would need to ride in it during the Kentucky summer, but an old Army buddy of mine has decided to loan me one of his cars for the sake of the kids and my wife's sanity.

It looks as though the clutch assembly might be off-axis of the pulley itself, if that means anything........

So with the symptoms I have, could it just be the pulley and/or bearings? An easy fix for an otherwise shady diagnosis from the shop? Thanks in advance guys.

 

[Dundy]

you need the a/c clutch. that should be all

 

[Dozer11B]

I knew it- easily pulled from a junkyard, right?? Damned Firestone......

 

[Saudade]

Yep. You can see the break in the return spring at the 12 o'clock spot as well. New clutches are rather expensive. You can get a compressor at the junk yard and just swap the clutch out. You don't even need to discharge the system.

 

[Dozer11B]

Hey thanks for the help guys, but after doing som more searching here, it seems it may be wiser just to replace the complete compressor as a few factors such as mileage (146k), plus hotter climate may mean the compressor itself could go as well. Better to get it done once for piece of mind. Plus I don't really have access to the tools and a spot to work on it yet.

 

[kastein]

swap the compressor, bring it to a valvoline instant oil change or any other fullservice quicklube advertising A/C recharges - they have a machine that can draw a vacuum on the system and then recharge it properly with lube and freon. Service will probably cost you about $150, add that to say $50 for the compressor/clutch from the JY and you're still way way ahead.

 

[Pelican]

Just curious why you would pull the fuse for the blower motor. Without the A/C you could still get some cooling with the vent setting, at least during the cooler parts of the morning and evening.

 

[Dozer11B]

I had the wrong fuse Pelican. I assumed it would be in the cab, but it's in the box under the hood. Gonna dig up a schematic laying those out.

 

[jeepster_259]

I got a used compressor off ebay for $40 shipped and it's worked great in my 98. Rent a vacuum pump from autozone for free, as well as the gauge set and buy a few cans of freon (about $8 each) and charge it yourself. For $75 or so, you can replace the compressor and recharge your system. Very simple to do also. To replace the compressor it is 4 bolts on the mount and 2 bolts at the refrigerant line. Very easy.

 

[usna61]

If you know someone that owns a garage, it's very helpful.

I had the clutch on mine seize up, and as a result, the thing stopped moving, eventually burning through the fan belt. I talked to one of my dad's friends who owns a garage near home, and he was able to get me the parts for wholesale. I swapped it out myself, then paid for the recharge fee. All in all spent 320 bucks instead of dropping 1200-1800 to pay for labor.

Team cherokee had the entire compressor for $325, so even though the JY part is cheaper, you might have the clutch go out sooner than you would on a remanufactured one. Here's the link to Team Cherokee http://www.teamcherokee.com/AC_and_Heating/index.html

Just my .02

 

[Ecomike]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/89-9...ptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccessories

Here is one, reman for $150 with the clutch.


I just found and bought one for $35, reman for my 89 Renix, no clutch.

Mine still works, but the front seal is no longer sealing on mine.

Oh, for $35, Ebay still rocks!