Blown Air Conditioning Compressor

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LandSquid83

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Here's my latest Scoobie Doo mystery, a blown air conditioning compressor.

I have a 2001 Jeep Wrangler TJ Sport 4.0 I6 with 176k miles that I purchased last month after my TJ of 13 years was totaled by a guy with a lead foot and a death wish.

It has its issues, like the fact that the A/C works about as well as my lazy ass brother-in-law, never. Who needs A/C when you've got windows and a soft top?

Then yesterday morning she had a hard time starting. She just kept turning over until eventually starting. This happened several times throughout the day. Maybe it's the battery... the starter... alternator? Where to begin?

After driving on the highway and then a few side streets I started to noticed a short chirp that sounded like an angry raccoon under the hood. Then heat started to rise up from the shifter followed by the dreaded smell of smoking hot rubber.

No sooner did I get pulled over when suddenly a loud noise like someone blowing their nose into a pillow erupted from the engine.

Shit...

I managed to get home, only to find a spray of melted black rubber under the hood.

After a quick scan and some frantic googling I deduced a gasket in the air conditioning compressor blew.

What. The. Actual. Fuck.

How far off the mark am I? And if I'm right, what caused it? Failed compressor? Clogged line? Lack of refrigerant? Bad temperature sensor? All of these? None of these?

I seek your knowledge.

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Is there any play in the pulley? Remove the belt and spin and wiggle the pulley. There should be no lateral play and very little to no in and out play.

The compressor should not spin with the pulley with the engine off. If it does, your clutch is probably seized, which forced the compressor to be on even when it shouldn't have been.
 
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Just came across this:

Loss of refrigerant will also threaten to damage the compressor, leading to it overheating. If the compressor burns out, the entire air conditioner will often need to be replaced.
 
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That’s always possible. There are protection systems in place that are designed to prevent under-pressure or over-pressure, namely the low and high pressure switches. They should protect the compressor from damage unless they’ve failed. The clutch is also designed to disengage at high RPM to protect the compressor.

The compressor should only be running if either the defrost settings or the A/C settings are selected on the dial.

A seized clutch would force the A/C compressor to run continuously, bypassing all the safety features and potentially causing catastrophic failure of the compressor.
 
Personally, I would replace everything but the evaporator, and flush the evaporator with a chemical flush.

If the compressor failed catastrophically, it could have sent debris into the rest of the system, starting with the condenser, that could eventually find its way back through the system and either plug the orifice tube or damage the new compressor.

The evaporator is a huge PITA to change, and I would only do it if I had to or if I was doing a heater core at the same time.

Be sure to replace the accumulator, as the desiccant will wear out over time. The system will also need to have a vacuum drawn on it so that the refrigerant is not contaminated with air or water vapor.
 
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At this point I would purchase a replacement non AC belt and bypass the compressor for now. Give yourself a breather while you figure how to deal with it.
 
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LandSquid83 said:
Now the question is, replace the compressor and belt or replace the whole AC system?
Click to expand...

Like @Steel City 06 said, if the compressor did indeed grenade then you are going to have to flush the system & you might want to just throw another condenser in there too. A compressor, condenser, receiver/dryer, & system clean. Install new parts, draw a vacuum to get it all dry, & recharge by weight.
 
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qslim said:
Like @Steel City 06 said, if the compressor did indeed grenade then you are going to have to flush the system & you might want to just throw another condenser in there too. A compressor, condenser, receiver/dryer, & system clean. Install new parts, draw a vacuum to get it all dry, & recharge by weight.
Click to expand...
Oh yeah, I blew it up like a burrito supreme
 
Looking at RockAuto you need a belt 75.0" in length, 6 ribs. Most auto parts stores should have something within a half inch of that. The part numbers usually begin with 750XXXX or end with XXXX750, where the three digits are the length in inches (75.0" in these examples).
 
Funny thing is, my ac compressor just went yesterday. Smelled something burning after I started it, AC sucked, pulled out of parking spot and drove for 5 secs, immediately got worse smell and went to park. Smoke poured out of the grill/hood, AC clutch fried. Fun stuff
 
qslim said:
Like @Steel City 06 said, if the compressor did indeed grenade then you are going to have to flush the system & you might want to just throw another condenser in there too. A compressor, condenser, receiver/dryer, & system clean. Install new parts, draw a vacuum to get it all dry, & recharge by weight.
Click to expand...
Lots of good advice here. Internal catastrophic failure is the big concern. Evacuate the system and remove the hose manifold from the rear of the compressor. Inspect the compressor discharge (small diameter) hose for debris, especially any black residue. If debris is found then proceed as above.
 
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