jeepxj412

My AC compressor has gone bad and since the end of summer is uppon us i dont feel i will need a new one so i bought a bypass pully to put in place of the compressor. i was wondering if anyone had first hand expierience doing this procedure. what do i need to disconnect, can i leave anything in, when disconnecting do i need to drain anything out? any help please

trplxj

why not leave the compressor in place and just disconnect the clutch? Seams like that would be much easier.

kojoff

Thats the first thing I thought, but, what if the compressor is locked? Clutch and all. Ive seen it before on another vehicle... namely the Peterbuilt I used to drive way back when...

jeepxj412

because i have heard that in doing that it can still seize up and rip the belt appart. so im not even going to risk it

jeepxj412

anyone?? i know i should have posted this last night but my power went out I was hoping to get this done tonight.

Bustedback

I would just leave the compressor on, the "what if" factor is not enough for me to go through the trouble.

RedRoamer

since you already have the replacement pulley just remove compressor and cap the lines, if you're ever going to put ac back in. if not just cut the lines anywhere.

djb383

U can leave everything in (except the compressor) and in 10 minutes or less that compressor is out of there. PRESUMING U HAVE ZERO, ZIP, NADA PRESSURE remaining in the a/c system, loosen/remove the belt, remove the bolt that holds the rubber hose/manifold assembly to the compressor and remove the 4 bolts that hold the compressor to the bracket. May take longer if bolts are rusty/break.

SpacedOutXj

there is a bracket you can buy that is just a pulley with nothing on it

Bustedback

Leave the compressor on and you don't have to worry about capping the lines off and getting crap in them.

5-90

I'm assuming your compressor clutch has frozen, from what you're saying (or the compressor has frozen - which means the pully will still turn, but the clutch likely won't be far behind...)

To be totally environmentally responsible, you'll want to have a vacuum drawn on your system before you open the first fitting. A shop will then be able to reclaim the refrigerant for filtering and reuse.

Having said that, it's really fairly simple - and I had to do this myself on my 88 a few years back (hose blew, so there wasn't anything left in the system. Compressor froze from no oil circulation, clutch froze just to be a pain in the ****, but I already had an idler on the shelf with a new bearing put in!)

Remove the hoses from the back of the compressor, then lay them aside and tie them to something convenient with a zip-tie. You'll probably eventually remove them from the vehicle, but it's not necessary.

Remove tension on the belt, to the point where you can pull the belt off of the compressor pully (no need to totally remove it.)

Remove the compressor - there are two long bolts underneath it. Save the bolts, set the compressor aside.

Set the idler pully assembly in place, and start the bolts through. Put the nuts on. I think it gets torqued to ~35 pound-feet, but you can probably find the spec on my site.

Lay the belt atop the pully.

Retension the belt.

Probably take you something less than an hour, unless you're really unsure of yourself. It's a simple job - I've been at mechanics longer than most, but I think I had it done in 20 minutes or so...

CodeXJ

If the compressor isn't frozen, go ahead and leave it in place. With the clutch disengaged the compressor isn't turning, so unless the clutch activates you won't have any trouble. Unplug it to be safe, since it'll engage the compressor with the Defrost.

jeepxj412

thanks guys. I got a little bit of mixed answers but most of them were saying what i was sceptical of doing, which was leaving the compressor on. but since I did already get the new pulley i think i will just cap off the lines and put the new pully on. thanks to all that responded. I would have loved to leave the compressor on but I have heard multiple situations where it has locked up and tore apart the belt. so I'm not saying it wouldnt work, Im just saying that i dont want to risk anything since i do travel a lot of miles each day to work. so once again guy i appreciate all your help

Doc Brnard

Basically what I read was:

Leave the compressor in place unless the clutch is frozen. If it is not, then let it ride as just another pulley in the system. Me, I don't use AC and have plans to make my AC into an air compressor. Kind of a nice asset if you ask me. Airing up/down directly on the trail, without waiting for those cheap-a$$ cig lighter compressors........priceless.


If you are going to do that (leave in place), I would find the plug that supplies electricity to the clutch and disconnect it, guaranteeing that if a passenger decides they want AC, they won't cause you to throw a belt.

jeepxj412

welp the "new pulley" that I got was wrong the auto parts store gave me a bypass pulley for a grand cherokee. now I have been looking EVERYWHERE for one for a 98 cherokee. even the dealer and they werent able to get me one. does anyone have a part number and or a website that will sell one?? Please I need help FAST