leave to come home tomorrow and my ac compressor has gone out in my truck. 800$ to fix which i don't have so i get to drive 13 fucking hours with no ac. !ff/: then i have to come back sunday for ten more days. :bash:

In the old days we used to have to drive with the windows down to keep cool

Just as an aside, what kind of truck?

Reason I ask is that we took my GMC to a family friend, and found out it was a $250 fix. The belt tensioner was damaged, which caused the AC compressor not to turn.

2003 ram with hemi. i know its the clutch assembly in the compressor. when i turn the ac on i can see the clutch slipping and slinging oil from around the seal.

don't worry man, i've been w/ out ac in my car now for 3 years. The worst part of not having ac in the summer is right when you get into your car, then after bout 10 minutes of driving you'll get comfy.

Mabey in Illinois?
Not in South Georgia.

All due respect but rolling around south of the gnat line without AC is brutal.

That sucks.

i agree w/ that, but illinois is probably the most humid state in the US.

iy88767

You ever been in Alabama or Mississippi?

yes i have, very humid. But they don't have winters like we do, so their bodies can get used to the humidity cause they ususally have consistant weather year round. But, yes, in the summer, they probably have it worse than we do. but i'm basing it off from constant weather change.

Who gave you the $800 price bud?

If you see oil the compressor is fried too......

Doc, does the compressor and clutch usually come as a single unit assembly?
My clutch slips and I bought the whole thing.
No sense in buying one with out the other?

some shop up here in illonois. i'm driving home to a mechanic i trust back home.

Either or, separately or as an assembly.

Clutches have a tendency to go out on todays cars more than ever. IF they don't eat the front seal, simply replacing the clutch will do. But if you see oil, it's gotten the seal so a complete replacement will be needed.

And due to age, sometimes it may be better just to replace the entire compressor instead of the clutch. I've seen clutches go out and then the compressor fail a week or two later.

The "key" is when the compressor is replaced the "Acumulator" must also be replaced and the entire system vacated (vacuumed) or the warranty is void on the compressor assembly.

It can get pricey in a hurry, BUT if you know how to play the game you can save some bucks.

When Metter mentioned $800, that would be the price to replace the entire compressor, not just the clutch. (2.5 hours shop rate @ $125 bucks per hour = $312.50 plus $390 parts and around $90 for freon and oil.)

Total job time is, without access to our shop PC and off top of my head, around 2.5 hours is pretty much standard on just about all cars and trucks except Honda's and some Toyota's. (German cars are another beast and expensive as hell to repair)

Much of that time involves pulling a vacuum on the system, which can be done UN-attended, so the mechanic can be working on something else during that time.

Since the mechanic "can be" working on another vehicle during the repair, haggle with the shop owner/manager about a lower labor rate. Maybe say 200 or 225. Play the poor pitiful broke as hell routine. lol

Really there are to many variables without knowing all the details, but we could probably do it on a quick out for $650 - $675 and still make money. Granted it isn't that big of a break but a buck 50 is a buck 50. (And that lowered labor to around $175)

btw, most shops operate at $125 per hour. We charge $90. But IF taxes keep going up, that will have to be adjusted upwards too.

You want to put the compressor assembly on my Ranger?
It`s old and the clutch slips.

got it back home and took it to a mechanic i trust. the problem is the fan motor went out on the compressor. dodge puts the compressor blower off to the side with its own blower and my fan motor went out. it burned the compressor up.

question is, i know i have to replace the compressor and fan moter, but DO I HAVE to replace the condensor and dryer as well or will flushing them out suffice?

The condenser should be OK, but with a new compressor a new dryer (accumulator) is required for warranty purposes.

Is the mechanic recommending a new condenser as well?