Thread: AC Compressor Going Bad?

Hey guys, I've been reading all around the internet about what I heard on my car the other day. I think I may have a failing AC compressor bearing. The car makes a rattle tinny noise SOMETIMES. When I turn the AC on it goes away and I get all the cold air I want. Right now there is no noise even when the AC is off, so do you guys think it might be going bad? I have read that it's not too good of a thing for this guy to seize up, as it might wear my belt and leave me stranded. Seems like I would need to get some evacuation pump and flush with a special flush liquid if I were to replace the entire compressor myself. Not sure if this is within my DIY expertise. Let me know what you guys think. Thanks.

Just my experience:
I have a 99 and when the AC is on it makes a god awful noise.
So I am having the clutch replaced since it was narrowed down to being the noise maker.

Just an idea, maybe you can get lucky and just have the clutch replaced and not have to worry about messing with the whole AC system.

remove your belts and grab, test every pulley under the hood, if a pulley is bad it will have some side to side play, the a.c clutch will have lots of slop in the part that spins (where the belt fits) around the center part.

if the a/c compressor is the problem, you can take it to a a/c shop, pay them to evacuate your system, hold the refrigerant, and put it back after you swap out the compressor, changing the clutch requires special tools and knowing what you are doing. not worth it in the long run imo.

Typically when the compressor is off and you get noise, it's etiher the bearing or the clutch plate needs to be spaced out.

thanks for the help guys, if the sounds comes back and stays back, I will take it in and have them look at the clutch on the compressor. I don't think I have the know how to properlly space the plate in that small area.