A/C Compressor - Automotive Climate
Content
Most modern cars have a variety of devices for a comfortable ride. One of them is a car air conditioner - in our time it becomes an indispensable thing during the summer heat. In case of emergency, you can repair and replace the compressor and the entire system yourself.
Determining Compressor Faults
Air conditioning is a seasonal device, usually for the winter we completely forget about its existence in the car. Therefore, its malfunction after trying to turn on the air conditioner in the summer becomes, in most cases, a complete surprise. We will diagnose the air conditioner ourselves. In the air conditioning system, the weak link is the compressor.
Do not rush to blame the manufacturer - after driving on our roads, not only this device can fail - in addition to the compressor, electronics can fail. The problem with the power supply is mainly due to blown fuses.. The condition of the fuses is easy to understand just by looking at these details. A simple replacement can fix the problem.
The problem with the air conditioner may also be a small amount of freon due to a leak.
A leak is also easy to determine - if under the hood traces of oil are visible on the aluminum tubes of the air conditioner (it feels like fat to the touch), then most likely your compressor has automatically turned off. This is how the system works - it is programmed in the on-board computers of the car that an emergency shutdown is triggered at low pressure in the system so that a timely replacement is made.
Often the cause of a breakdown is a loose or damaged clutch. Visual inspection will help to easily identify this problem. Fortunately, even a beginner can replace the clutch. It is also necessary to check the rotor bearing, freon can escape through it, which again can be seen from the oily spots. It is better to replace the bearing with a new one before the summer season.
What you need for replacement and repair - we select the tool
Of all the air conditioning equipment, the compressor is the most expensive and important device, so replacement or removal must be done carefully. To make repairs, a standard set of tools and small skills are enough. In most cars, removing the compressor is not so difficult, it is mainly located under the generator. The removal process itself can be interfered with by pipes, a spar, an exhaust manifold, a generator.
It is usually easier to remove the compressor through the top. A complete replacement of the air conditioning compressor is carried out if you are sure that it has mechanical damage that cannot be eliminated without a car master. However, these are quite rare cases - most compressor damage can be repaired by welding or soldering.
Compressor replacement - step by step
Before performing all work, it is necessary to remove the terminals on the battery and prepare a fire jack for every fire jack. Lay out all removed parts on a stand or plywood so as not to lose them after replacing and reinstalling the compressor. There are several types of automotive compressors, in newer brands of cars often scroll devices, in older cars - rotary vane.
A more modern compressor uses a rotating swashplate system. First you need to remove the exhaust manifold of your car, then the generator itself. Mounting for the generator can not be removed, the main thing is to loosen the tension belts for the air conditioner clutch so that you can work comfortably. After all the work done, we proceed to inspect the problematic device. Replacing or repairing the air conditioning compressor is carried out carefully so as not to damage the tubes for suction and injection of freon into the system.
They are located directly on the supercharger itself, no manipulations with unscrewing the tubes are necessary, since they are included in the rubber inserts. It is enough just to shake them, and they will slide off the seal. Do not worry, the pressure of the system will not disappear anywhere, you will not have to bleed or refuel anything. Carefully remove the chip with electrical wires. We unscrew the bolts on which the compressor is attached to the engine, and take it out.
Then determine the cause of the problem. Replacing a used part or soldering are the following steps, after which we put the repaired compressor back. After installing it, check the system for leaks. Start the car engine and directly the air conditioning compressor itself. After giving it a little work, see if there are any traces of oil on the nozzles. If there are any, then try to insert them more tightly.
