AC compressor failure

Before we quote you prices on repairing your air conditioning system, we ask you to take a moment to read the following to help understand why it is so important to do the AC repairs right the first time.

The air conditioning compressor has failed on your vehicle. The compressor has hundreds of internal steel and aluminum moving parts that operate at very high speeds. The compressor requires lubrication from oil in the AC system to keep it from failing.

For whatever reason, this compressor has failed internally, whether from age, normal wear, lack of oil, or a failure somewhere else in the system that put stress on it.

When a compressor fails internally, small shards of metal are thrown throughout the AC system. These shards often wedge in small crevices where they are virtually impossible to clean out.

If a new compressor is installed without getting all of these small shards of metal out of the rest of the system, they will eventually break loose and circulate through the AC system and destroy the new compressor.

We are going to give you some options along with their pros & cons. Please read this over and ask any questions.

Option 1
Install a remanufactured compressor, a new receiver drier, a new metering valve (depending on the system, either an orifice tube OR an expansion valve), and flush the AC condenser (unit in front of the radiator), evaporator (unit under the dash), and hose/tube assemblies (that connect the compressor to the condenser, to the receiver drier, to the metering valve to the evaporator, and back again to the compressor).

Check proper operation of the AC cooling fan under the hood and the one under the dash.

Flushing the hose, condenser and evaporator are a gamble. There are crevices in these parts where debris may lodge where the flush cannot remove it.

Option 2
Do Option 1, plus replace the condenser. The condenser is the most likely place that harmful debris will lodge and cause future problems. Replacing it is good insurance.

Option 3
On many models, particularly Ford products, the insides of the rubber hoses deteriorate and send rubber slivers through the system that cause the same kind of damage that metal shards do. If we find any evidence of this, OR if there are signs that the hoses/lines are leaking, now is the time to replace them.

Option 4
The evaporator unit is buried under the dash where it cannot be easily seen on most every car and truck on the market. It is also true that many of these units leak. Replacing an evaporator on most vehicles is a huge expenditure. Unless the evaporator is leaking badly OR is clogged, we usually will not replace it in the general course of replacing a compressor.

One other note: NAPA AC parts come with a One Year warranty on parts and a 6 month or 6000 mile warranty on labor (if the job is done completely); Aftermarket (generic) parts, that are less expensive, come with a One Year warranty on parts only. The same is true for original equipment manufacturer parts. Their prices are slightly higher, fit and finish is excellent, but the warranty is on parts only, for One Year.

Back to Questions & Answers