No need to pull the compressor to change out the clutch. Remove the center bolt on the front of the clutch. The belt pulley and center of the clutch should pull off as one unit, as it fits on the tapered shaft of the compressor. The magnet is pressed on the nose of the compressor.
Edit-- When you did this test, was the high pressure switch plugged in? You may want to jumper both the high side along with the low side, and see if the compressor clutch will click.

 

I'd be a little careful as well. If you need a new AC clutch, there's a good chance something ELSE is wrong with the system as well which caused the clutch to fail.

If the AC does in fact need a charge, that means there is a leak somewhere which would need to be fixed. However, if the system needs a charge or is empty, I'd take out the orifice tube and inspect/replace it (they are like 3 dollars). If the orifice tube is covered in debris or black colored slime, your AC system will need a lot more attention and I wouldn't bother with a new clutch (you'd probably need a new compressor and condenser.)

If you do open the system/there is a leak, you'll also want to change the accumulator/recieve dryer unit. It should be like 30-40 bucks. It's what keeps the moisture out of the system. When exposed to the air (if there is a leak in the system or the system is opened up), they become "worn out" and can't absorb any more moisture so it's always a good idea to replace them when the system is open.



My brother had a 2001 ford Taurus. His AC compressor clutch went out. We took a risk to replace just the clutch, and it ended up working but only for about a year and a half. The reason the clutch went out was because one of the cooling fans stopped working so the AC condesnor got too hot, making the compressor heat up too much. This cause the clutch to fail, but also damaged the compressor in the meantime.

Also, my compressor seized up about 7 years ago. I didn't know much about AC then, and decided to replace the clutch because I thought I might be fine in just replacing that. Well as soon as I replaced it and turned the AC on, the new clutch burnt up because the compressor was seized and didn't allow the clutch to turn properly when it was engaged. I'd try and make sure your compressor isn't seized if you do put on a new clutch.


I'm not trying to dissuade you from replacing the clutch either, but just be aware that there may be more than clutch problems if it really is bad. Anyways good luck hopefully if gets fixed soon! The hot weather is coming!

 

I put a gauge on it and it's showing it has a proper charge. How do you check the compressor to make sure it's not siezed up?

 

Hmm it may be kinda hard. I've only checked them when they are not installed or when the system isn't charged so I don't know how difficult it's going to be with the system hooked up and charged.

What I do when they are not hooked up is just grab the clutch by hand and make sure to reach the plate in the back. Then get some good leverage and try and turn them. If your clutch plate is triangular shaped and has the three studs, you could take the belt off, and try and use a large screwdriver or pry-bar to turn the disk (you want the shaft of the compressor to turn.) I honestly don't know how hard it will be to try and turn the shaft of the compressor while it is hooked up and charged though since you'll be compressing the refrigerant in the system. I would imagine if you go slow, it should still be able to turn no harder than something else on the engine. It should turn easier than the crank pully does that's for sure!

 

So I finally and broke down and bought a new clutch for the truck. Just ran it out there and turned the key on with the ac on I plugged the new clutch in and nothing. No clicking. But if I jump the low pressure ac switch it'll click. So I'm assuming the switch is bad also. Napa has them for $20 gonna grab one tomorrow. These 85 degree days are suckling already.

 

Well I'm confused. I put a new low pressure switch on it this morning and nothing. If I jump it it will engage the clutch. But that's the only way. The truck is showing a proper charge.

 

Any updates?

 

Yup. I let the shop do all the work. $440 out the door got me a new AC compressor, dryer and orifice tube. And that included labor and a system recharge. She's blowing cold now.

 

Wow 440 is super cheap for AC work. At least around here in AZ. I'd probably would have asked them what the orifice tube looked like and if they flushed the system as well. The r134a condensers are pretty difficult to flush properly so if there was compressor failure in the system, not replacing the condenser could cause problems later down the road.

However, the shop would probably have let you know if they thought it was bad because it's pretty easy to replace the condenser and they'd make more money off replacing it so you're probably good. Sometimes you can get ultra lucky and have the orifice tube catch any remaining debris and not affect the AC much as well if the condenser did in fact have debris in it.

Like I said you're probably good, I just like to be picky with AC stuff since it's so important here in AZ.

 

Who needs ac in az?

 

People that don't have A/C already.

 

Haha yeah thats right. I've done my time without AC here so I'm done with that!

 

LOL good reply. I jumped my low pressure last night and the clutch came on so I need a charge. Not sure if I have a bad leak or not.

 

Hmm I'd probably recommend replacing the accumulator and orifice tube if there is enough leaked out where the clutch won't come on.

Then you can add more oil and vacuum the system down, then add refrigerant. The system is probably low on oil since it manages to leak out with refrigerant, so just a recharge may not be enough. You definitely can get by with that for a while, but there is a good chance that prolonged charging will cause issues later down the road.