92 Explorer, what happened

[PhilipC]

Today my engine started struggling and making noises while idling. It almost stalled, actually, and it put out a nasty smell liike something was burning up. Turned the defroster off and I could drive it home, what could need fixing regarding the defroster? Oh yeah, the sooner I fix this the better, because I can't safely go anywhere without the defroster on.

 

[Robb]

Did it run fine with the defroster off? Maybe the AC Comp locked up.

 

[Carl D.]

Did it run fine after turning off the defroster, if so it's gotta be the blower motor.

 

[Opera House]

Did you have AC in the summer?

If you didn't, my bet is the compressor. One thing you can try is to unplug the connector at the compressor. The wire that goes to the clutch. This will disable it and allow you to blow hot air on the windshiedl to defrost (like in the old days). They run the AC to remove moisture from the air. Thats what I did since the AC in mine hasn't held a charge for years.

Bad blower motors usually take out rhe speed resistor assembly so motor only works in high.

 

[PhilipC]

am about to check it out

I'm going to disconnect the lead from the compressor to the clutch and see what happens. One thing I didn't add in my original post was that turning the fan off didn't make a difference, the noise/other stuff stopped only when I actually turned the defroster off.

 

[PhilipC]

Thanks

Thanks for the input, it was indeed the compressor, and it was great to have such an easy fix. Thanks for your help!