Serpentine Belt query

[Lazylabs]

Hi all

I'm in the market for a Ford Explorer, god knows why but just fancy one..

I went to see a 1997 Ford Explorer at the weekend, looked and sounded good.

It has a few things that need doing but noting major..already had a lot of work done on the engine and gearbox, new timing chains etc..

One thing that has been niggling me is I notice on the right hand side of the engine bay there is a pulley wheel, with ribbed teeth that didn't have the serpentine belt running around it, looks like its been bypassed... Am I right in thinking this pulley wheel belongs to the A/C pump/compressor?

in which case does this mean that someone has bypassed this with a smaller pulley? The air con wasn't cold when I checked it during the viewing.

I'm waiting for the owner to come back to me but just thought I'd get your opinions in the mean time.

Cheers
Al

 

[Bobmbx]

Sounds like someone bypassed the AC compressor by using a different belt. There could be a couple of reasons. 1) The compressor doesn't work or, 2) they felt they didn't need it, and thought they could get better fuel mileage by not running the compressor.

My thoughts:

1) It doesn't work. Try to spin the compressor by hand. There should be some resistance (in a normal compressor). Yours may be a little stuck if it hasn't been turned for a long time.

2) Bypassing the compressor to gain mileage or power is the hard way to do it. Just don't turn it on or, pull the electrical connector from the compressor.

For you, on your radiator cowling there should be a sticker that shows the belt routing. Check that to verify exactly what is bypassed.

 

[Lazylabs]

Sounds like someone bypassed the AC compressor by using a different belt. There could be a couple of reasons. 1) The compressor doesn't work or, 2) they felt they didn't need it, and thought they could get better fuel mileage by not running the compressor.

My thoughts:

1) It doesn't work. Try to spin the compressor by hand. There should be some resistance (in a normal compressor). Yours may be a little stuck if it hasn't been turned for a long time.

2) Bypassing the compressor to gain mileage or power is the hard way to do it. Just don't turn it on or, pull the electrical connector from the compressor.

For you, on your radiator cowling there should be a sticker that shows the belt routing. Check that to verify exactly what is bypassed.

Brilliant... many thanks for speedy response.

I shall investigate further.

It is fairly straight forward to swap the compressor if its knackered?

Regards
Al

 

[Bobmbx]

Brilliant... many thanks for speedy response.

I shall investigate further.

It is fairly straight forward to swap the compressor if its knackered?

Regards
Al

Depends on how mechanically inclined you are. If the AC system still has freon in it, you'll have to have that recovered by a licensed technician. (its a federal crime to knowingly discharge freon into the atmosphere, whether its R12 or R134a) If there is no freon, you may be in for a bit more than a compressor. It could have leaked out somewhere else and the previous owner then disabled the compressor instead of fixing the leak. To find out if there is freon in it, you can depress the low side schrader valve stem (like a tire stem) slightly and listen for a hiss. No hiss, no freon. As old as yours is, you may find you have the black death.

I don't know how much interference there is around your compressor, but on my '06 its a pain. Yours may be free and clear. There's normally 4 mounting bolts, an electrical connector, and 2 hoses.

There's lots of AC threads on the forum.

 

[janolsson]

See the photo below. On the right you can see some bolt holes on the head, that is where the bracket for the aircon mount to. So if this is the area that is bypassed then its def aircon

.

It may be a case that whomever did the work on the engine doesn't deal with aircon and disconnected it to remove the engine and let all the gas out. And didn't refill but just used a shorter belt to bypass. It is all guess work and the seller should have the full story if you can believe him/her.

 

[Lazylabs]

See the photo below. On the right you can see some bolt holes on the head, that is where the bracket for the aircon mount to. So if this is the area that is bypassed then its def aircon

.

It may be a case that whomever did the work on the engine doesn't deal with aircon and disconnected it to remove the engine and let all the gas out. And didn't refill but just used a shorter belt to bypass. It is all guess work and the seller should have the full story if you can believe him/her.

That's the area alright. It's definitely the air con compressor then.

I'll query this for sure. Dare I ask what black death is?

or is it explained on other threads?

 

[janolsson]

I was gonna guess at perished seals gumming up the system but then did a quick search and found this

You MIGHT be able to flush the condenser and evaporator clear with enough cleaner, but if it's really bad (usually a compressor that goes gets oil and metal shards all in the system, referred to as "black death") you will just have to replace EVERTHING to avoid future issues.

Basically if the compressor had gone the system will be fooked. I do know that if a system is left dry and the compressor is run then this can damage it. Also if the system is dry for a period of time the seals can dry out and shrink causing leaks. Additives cane be added when it is regassed that can reverse this to a certain degree. I'm sure an aircon specialist would be able to tell you whether it is worth regassing or maybe even pressure test the system. If the compressor is u/s then i'm sure a working used one could be had from a breakers for affordable monies.