1997 E350 Super 5.4l Gas

Pulled up to a stop sign yesterday and lost power steering. Then the a/c started blowing warm and sure enough, the battery light was on. Never heard a squeal or a pop but that serpentine belt was SHREDDED. Looking at what was left told me why, that was the thinnest belt I've ever seen. I checked all of the pulleys and drives, everything spun freely so no problems other than a belt that should have been changed 50k miles ago.

However, when I got to the A/C compressor, I noticed that there was a loose metal plate on the front. It wouldn't come off, but I could move it in any direction except off at least 1/2". Looking at some videos, that plate is the actual clutch plate. Apparently that front bolt came free or something. But the a/c works fine, no noise at all, so apparently the clutch is working. I am worried that it won't work much longer. Can I just replace the bolt? Clutch kits are around $60-90, BUT I can't find one that says it comes with a new bolt. And if I can just replace the bolt and it's fixed that would be much cheaper, but I'm willing to spend the money if I need to. Also, is it possible to install a clutch kit without removing the compressor? One video shows a two jaw puller, another says that it can just be rocked back and forth until it comes off.

 

How about maybe listing WHAT you're asking about? Year, chassis engine CID or fuel type--ya know pertinent things like that?

 

call a dealership with your vin and see if they'll sell you that bolt -- or if it is even available... other than that -- just go to the junkyard -- the compressor in your vehicle is used on many ford vehicles, so you should be able to harvest the correct bolt quite easily.

They may have different part numbers -- but most of that is just mounting position of the AC manifold lines.

 

does your compressor look like this and is the missing bolt the one circled in red?

 

Finally got a chance to really look at it, that's the right compressor, turns out the bolt is still there but all three bushings are completely gone. Guess I'll be replacing the clutch soon.

 

Probably a Motorcraft YB-3020, that's the most common clutch used in that era.

If you need a new bolt or shims, AutoZone carries a hardware pack for about $2. Santech MT0986.

 

projectSHO89 is probably correct but can you post a pic of the clutch hub? Not all clutch hubs have those bushings/dampeners. I have one of each for my vans ac compressor. Both of mine are Motorcraft but you could also have a aftermarket hub depending on if someone has worked on your system before.

 

Oh, wow, I didn't know you could get the clutch hub by itself. That never showed up on my searches online. However, according to my new research, my hub is actually the YB-3040. Hard to tell since some of the parts places don't show the front of the hub. Since the a/c works great now, the clutch and coil obviously still work, and just replacing the hub will save me at least $50. I may go ahead and get the shim kit mentioned so I can set the proper air gap if it's different than the shim that's in the compressor.

 

I will try to post a pic in a bit.

 

 

YB3040 from Amazon

 

After looking it up, it is the YB-3040 instead of the YB-3020. Was going by memory....

 

Heck, if you got that close by memory you're doing better than I am. I'm just glad it's a cheaper fix than I thought it would be.

 

So the new clutch came in. I went down to Autozone and picked up the install kit just in case.

Turned the key to on, turned on the a/c to lock the clutch, removed clutch, turned key off. Old clutch was SHOT. The spacer washer was thicker than any of the ones in the kit, but I decided to try it first. Air gap was a bit wide but not awful (by eye). After installation, the clutch would not catch and made an awful racket. Okay, smaller shim. After trying half of the pack, I ended up trying it with no spacer whatsoever. Still slipped. I guess the clutch had worn grooves in the pulley so bad that the new clutch would not engage. Looking at the back of the new clutch, you could see there was only a small ring where it was actually contacting the pulley. So apparently I need a new pulley as well. I bolted the old clutch (or the pieces, actually) back on and the a/c works for now, but I will be looking for a new pulley. It locks in place fine so the magnet shouldn't need to be replaced. I've seen a couple of vids that show this clutch being replaced with the compressor still on the vehicle, I'm hoping I am lucky enough to have it be the same on my van.

 

Clutch pulley is Motorcraft YB542 per Rockauto.

As long as you can get the retaining snap ring off and carefully pry the old pulley off the snout of the compressor housing, the pulley can be changed in place. I don't know how much room you have on the Econoline, though.