I successfully removed the A/C compressor pulley and pressed in a new bearing. When I slide the pulley back on it seems to slide all the way but then in scrubs "something" while it turns. I can back it off a bit and it spins fine, but when I push it all the way on it is hitting something as it turns.

I tried to put the snap ring back on but even though the pulley slides on far enough to apparently scrub something, it's NOT on far enough for the snap ring to reach the groove. I can get the snap ring around the shaft but it won't slide back far enough to hit the groove. When the snap ring IS on there pushed back as far as possible, the pulley will barely turn at all.

Is there a bit farther the pulley goes on where it "snaps" into place and turns freely? I don't want to force it, but I'm really stumped.

I know this is not a heavily traveled message board, relatively speaking, but I am in the middle of the repair and am on a time schedule. So, if anyone has ANY advice please chime in. In the meantime I will continue my online search for answers.

Thanks!

Is it possible I pushed the new bearing in too far? That simply does not look like the case, but if the bearing was less deeply set then it would give more clearance to the pulley and more room for the snap ring. What appears to be happening is that the pulley touches the coil top preventing it from going in farther. Because it is touching the top surface of the coil, spinning it is difficult and it doesn't go down far enough for the snap ring to engage the groove. I am perplexed to the point of almost enjoying this, because there seems to be no explanation and I can't wait to figure this out.

 

It seems the pulley got slightly distorted when I removed it from the compressor. I tried to correct it with my press, but of course I made it worse.

Can someone please tell me where I can source a new pulley/bearing assembly? I do not need a new compressor, mine works great. The clutch appears to work fine too; I just need the pulley. I would prefer to buy it new, but I will go whatever route is fastest.

Anyone want to sell me one off of a parts car?

 

harvest:
I would take exception to your statement that this board is not heavily traveled. Not too many compressors go out, few folks work on their own ACs, and most of us that do would buy a $ 250. compressor rather than get into the mess you are in. I would take one off a "spare" compressor I have, but I figure I would bugger it getting it off. And I do not want to give you the whole compressor.

 

That was certainly not a disparaging remark, I meant "relative" to other car type forums. There is more traffic on the BMW forums I frequent because there are more BMWs out there, that's all I meant. I expect a faster response on those forums just because of the heavier traffic. I made the comment in an attempt to say "I understand that although I would like a fast answer, I understand that's not a practical expectation". For what it's worth, the Jaguar forum seems to be much more civil. I really like that aspect.

The cost of the compressor is not a prohibitive issue, I just don't want to breach a system with a perfectly good compressor to install another perfectly good compressor simply because I bent the pulley. I'm not generally clumsy, but yes, I goofed and messed up a pulley. I will hit the scrap yards tomorrow and if that yields no results, I'll buy a new compressor. I will probably just use the pulley off the new compressor so I don't have to breach the system and put the new compressor on a shelf as a back-up.

I don't think I was clear either, I did not bend the pulley removing it; that was actually pretty easy. I bent it by not properly supporting the pulley when I pressed in the new bearing. And yes, I feel like a bonehead because of it...

 

I didn't take it as disparaging! I just meant, as you probably know, this is about the most active Jag forum out there.

If you don't round one up, next weekend I would be happy to try and get one off of an XJ6 compressor I have- I know the compressors are the same and I think the pulleys are too. Just give me the step by steps and I'll send it to you.

 

This morning I called the only large pull-it-yourself salvage yard in my area, which is about 30 minutes away. The guy clicked on his computer and said he had one car like mine, and i could have the pulley for $25. I drove out there and looked everywhere, nothing but XJ6 cars from the 80s and early 90s. He apologized and said he thought he saw one in the computer. I checked the Lincoln LS 3.9; same engine block, different A/C compressor. No joy at the scrap yard.

I stopped on the way home at a salvage parts store-front and he had a used one off a car with 119,000 miles. He wanted $90 and it was covered in oil/grime. The pulley spun beautifully so I offered him $65, he took it.

Pulley slipped right off the scrap yard compressor and right onto mine. Perfect fit and spins smooth and quiet. Fifteen minutes later my car is running and A/C is working perfectly, AND quietly. Happiness.

While inspecting everything, I noticed my crank pulley wobbles a bit. Should this concern me? No other issues, I can just see that it's not spinning perfectly like the rest of the pulleys. Could it be an optical illusion?

 

Well, it does have a rubber bushing and if someone has pulled the damper with a jaw puller, it could be knackered.

 

If your crank pulley is wobbling, check to see if it is loose- if it is not, then the rubber part may be distorted.

I have an XJR that sat for a couple of years with the prior owner and the pulley rubber distorted from the belt tension and heat. It runs fine, but I will get around to changing it sooner or later. There is a guy in WA that refurbs them for like $150.

PM me if you need a good used pulley I have one ready to ship out for not too much dough.

 

Hey there, sorry to jump on such an old thread!

I'm on a similar position...it seems unnecessary to junk a good compressor because of a bad bearing... but I can't find which bearing I need to get.

Do you happen to know where you got yours?
It's a 1998 XK8 4.0 but I think the models are mostly the same...

 

Totally agree. My other car is a 911 and the Rennlist forum can get nasty. Most of the guys there are helpful, but there are a few bad apples.

 

A/C compressor rebuilders replace them all the time. Take one out and match it up at a bearing supply shop.

I just take the old compressor to Yellow Rose Distributors - Home because I have been dealing with them since about 1995. (local shop)

 

I don’t know where you can get just the bearing or the clutch assembly but, keep in mind that the A/C compressors between the XK and the XJ have a subtle but yet substantial difference.

The XK compressor clutch assembly is 1 belt groove closer to the compressor than the XJ.

The XJ compressor clutch assembly is 1 belt groove further away from the compressor than the XK.

I found this out the hard way while trying my best to help this elderly woman who had cancer and was from out of town. Her 98’ XK compressor clutch bearing was about to seize up. We had another clutch assembly but from an XJ. I got the clutch assemblies swapped over and started it up and no more bearing noise. However, when I was checking the system pressures, I heard a noise from the front of the engine. The drive belt had walked off the backside of the XJ clutch assembly and 1 groove of the belt came off. Perplexed and defeated but yet had functional A/C, we let her go without charging her. We told her what was going on with it but she was fighting for her life and she was picking up her mom in town who also had cancer. They were both going to the hospital for chemotherapy so she was actually very grateful.

This was about 8 or so years ago and I was still newish where I worked at and chocked it up as a lesson learned.

 

Wow what a story.. and good to know thank you!

 

That's a good idea thanks ... I was going to try and get the pulley off without removing the compressor itself and needing to mess with the Dark Art of air-conditioning so we'll see how that goes....

 

You should be able to buy the clutch assembly on ebay, etc. They usually have snap rings holding them.

 

This is an interesting thread. My AC just suddenly went out. My wife was driving (of course) so I could not get any relevant details. A quick look and it sounded like the clutch was trying to engage but did not sound right. The RH fan was not coming on. The car was too hot to start poking around so I waited for a more suitable time. I started by checking the relevant fuses..OK. Going to move on to checking AC pressures. I was looking around for the suction line when I saw IT!

The outer plate of the ac clutch had fallen and was wedges in the hoses below the compressor. Looking at the inner plate, I would guess something's missing there.

Sounds like replacing a clutch is not a viable or efficient option. Unfortunate since I believe my compressor is fine. I'll probably opt to replace the entire assembly. My question is, for those who have done it...how hard is it to get the compressor out? Does it drop out the bottom or is it a nightmare disassembly? What is the freon capacity? Oh BTW, 2002 XJR SC.

 

AC Compressor Clutch Kit Pulley Coil Plate | eBay
Replacing the compressor would require a recharge of coolant. I believe I would try
to replace the clutch assembly first. $40 with free shipping is cheap by comparison.

 

The big question of the day on whether replacing the clutch assembly vs replacing the compressor and drier is: Is the clutch willing to come off the snout of the compressor without too much fuss? The same goes for installation of a new clutch.

How many miles are on the car? If you decide to do the compressor, pay a shop to evacuate the refrigerant, don’t just release it to the atmosphere.

 

Thanks for the responses guys. I have tried to remove clutches before and decided it was just more efficient and cost effective to replace the whole thing. Still on the fence here.

Remaining question is for someone who has replaced a compressor. I have not jacked the car up yet and looked at how much space I have and if it is a relatively simple job and just drop out the bottom? By contrast, I just replaced the alternator. I would say a medium difficulty job in that it required pulling the wheel, wheel well shrouds, fans and fan shroud, 2 belts and one tensioner to get access and room to the alternator out as well as other bits and pieces around the alternator. Not a fun or quick job but not terribly bad either.

 

In the long run you probably will be better off with a complete refit. You do not
know what caused the clutch to fail and access is never friendly. It is easy to see
that Jaguar engineers were far more focused on the ease of assembly than the
problems with disassembly.