The AC Compressor on my 2003 Ford F150 V6 2wd is leaking and I have an out of work mechanic that is going to replace it for me. I bought the new compressor and 134A already. He said he would do it for whatever I wanted to pay him. What would be a reasonable amount to pay for this job? I don't mind overpaying but I definitely don't want to under pay him.

 

That depends on the going labor rate in your area. For even a novice with the right tools and parts on hand this is a 2 hour job tops.

 

does he have the vacuum pump ? and he knows how to do a proper charge / oil ? Dealer will charge you $100. hour. Guy working on his own might be $25-30 ?

 

If you can save on much of the labor thats great, but you need more parts.

You will need to make sure you have a seal kit, a flush kit, flushing agent, manifold gauge set, possibly a new condenser, a new orifice tube, new accumulator, etc.

Whenever you have a compressor death, you need to flush the whole system out, and replace everything that can't be flushed. Otherwise your new compressor will fail again.

Most of the manifold hose sets contain a small muffler than cannot be flushed, if yours does, replace the hose assembly. Some condensers don't flush that well, it should be replaced. The orifice tube MUST be replaced, and should be replaced every time eh system is opened regardless of why the system is being serviced. The accumulator must also be replaced, it cannot be flushed.

Flush out any remaining hoses, and flush the evaporator.

I'm assuming your mechanic has most if not all of the needed tools.

Whether he is a mechanic or not, make sure he is licensed to service AC systems before you let him touch your car. Otherwise he may do more harm that good, and you will be responsible for it.

 

Take it to a dealer and get an estimate of the repair cost, parts and labor. Then decide what is fair to pay the technician based on the same quoted labor repair from him if he is a professional qualified tech out of work he should get at least 25-35 percent.

At my dealership an AC diagnostic is only 45.00.

 

All of that is only necessary if the compressor came apart internally and contaminated the system. OP said his is only leaking. Alldata has that job at 1.4 hrs plus 1.4 hrs to evacuate and charge the system. I would pay him at least $100 provided he has the equipment to pull a vacuum on the system and charge it properly. If not, $50 will be good then take it to an a/c shop to get charged.