Intermittent A/C

[htheduck]

Folks,
I'm not good with a/c systems nor electronics. I'm just searching for an explanation - in laymen's terms as to what's wrong, and what's the fix.

Quite simply: the a/c works fine - for a while (like 15 min) or so, then it will goto warm/outside? air. It will act like that for another 15 min, then resume A/C.

I'm guessing it's electronic? If it was a leak, all the coolant would be gone-since it's a closed system. I do not know how to troubleshoot the compressor/etc.

No strange belt sounds/or squeals. Everything appears under normal operating circumstances-i don't beat on the car. and it sees a combination of highway and city for about four days a week. Obviously as of the recent warm weather (northeast) and a recent 4 hour drive through PA - i've noticed these symptoms.

thinking that the oe system is like 13 years old, i had it flushed? and recharged-by some guy near my work place. the language (spanish) barrier is there but i get better rates with this guy in the city vs. near my home.

please help me troubleshoot as i'm looking for a quick response to solve this problem. i appreciate your patience in reading this...thanks.

 

[clindahl]

I had the same symptoms and my problem was an excessive air gap when things got really warm and the clutch was pretty well worn so I replaced it.

Check the air gap on the compressor clutch and see if it is on the high end of the allowable tollerances. I don't remember what the gap should be I dont have the book in front of me, but search and you shall find. There are a usually a couple of shims behind the clutch you can pull 1 out to decrease the gap and keep running for a while, or change the clutch out completely.

 

[htheduck]

should i go the route of clutch replacement only?
or
used compressor replacement?

i'm figuring the labor is similar...but i'm curious as to what the price differential might be...thanks.

 

[SHO_Diehard]

You can go a long time by just changing the shims to reduce clearance. I have gone 40k miles on the ATX by just adjusting the clearance.

I would not replace the compressor if it's okay. And the shim adjustment can be done without pulling the compressor or the ac clutch. You can do it yourself if you're handy. Also, Autozone rents a tool that helps in removing the nut on the compressor shaft.

 

[clindahl]

I agree that you should try the shim approach. If the car is cold it should take <1 hr start to finish if the nut isn't too badly rusted. The clutch plate takes a little work to get off, but as stated Autozone has a tool to pull it right off.

Rockauto lists the 10P15F reman compressor w/ clutch for ~ $260. The clutch it self new is $135.

I replaced just the clutch on my car. W/o removing the compressor is is a MAJOR pain to do. Chaning the shim on the clutch face is easy, the whole clutch is a MAJOR pain. Try the shim

 

[hawkeye18]

you can get a clutch for $50-60 on ebay. Make sure it's the 10P15F clutch. Clutch replacement is waaaaaaaay easier than the whole compressor. You will need snap ring pliers, big beefy ones. To just check the shims, though, you just need to get the nut off the center, for which you need a spanner wrench. Make sure you don't lose the shims! They like to pop off once you get the clutch face off...

 

[pjtoledo]

The electrical coil in the AC clutch can also fail. It may work fine until the engine heats up then a wire seperates and the ACstops. After the engine cools down it works again for a few minutes,,the process repeats. I found on 2 cars that if I drove 85 mph the air flow was enough to cool the clutch and it would start working again for as long as I could maintain 85. To finally diagnose my issues I spliced into the AC clutch wire harness and ran some wires into the cabin where I attached some meters to monitor it while driving.
Get a big pair of right angle snap ring pliers, the kind that has changeable tips. Its been a few years, but I think I cut a couple of allen wrenches to make custom tips.

Perry

 

[htheduck]

thank you for all the feedback so far.

 

[GreenShoOwner]

The previous owner of my SHO also did the shim trick successfully.

 

[htheduck]

on a second note:
the balance on my vents are not correct; example the front vents will blow the a/c into the defrost...has anyone had this problem?