my bandit

iTrader: (10)

well im on my 4th compressor now (stock was wore out, then the new ones clutch failed, then the 3rd one blew a hole in the casting and now im on this one) but everytime i replace all the needed stuff but a new problem came up... after i cleaned out the system, i hooked everything up and took it to the shop to get charged. it was working perfect, it was nice and cold but after a day it was just blowing hot air. so i went back he recharged it again and it was working fine again but now its back to blowing hot air. ive checked all of the hoses in the engine bay and nothing has oil on it and when he was charging it he could not find any leaks. i took off the plastic panel inside and nothing was wet or out of place..
any ideas of what to look for?

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

I always tell people....go to the dealership for A/C repairs. I had them do my A/C system like 5 years ago.....LIFETIME parts and labor. Like $700-$800, can't remember. But I'll never pay another cent for A/C repairs.

Few yeas ago while driving my A/C started blowing warm. I pulled into the dealership, waited about an hour or so and they had my car done. No charge. It was a wire that had fried somewhere. Few hundred dollar repair.....no charge.

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DAVE00

iTrader: (10)

OMG - $700-800 - I know that's not bad for AC but I personally did mine on my wife's suburban and my T/A and both cars came in at Half that for all the parts combined. If you know what your doing and get new parts with warranties, you should be fine. To the O/P - if you have a good compressor at home get the vacuum pump from Harbor Freight (runs off your compressor) and it does a dynamite job. With this and a set of guages you can do all your charging yourself when you have to change out the compressor and saves you time and money.

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

Yes.....but there's not a remanned compressor or other parts on the market anywhere that offer a LIFETIME parts and labor warranty. Lucky to get 90 day warranties on A/C stuff. I have a brand new AC Delco compressor and all factory parts. My A/C is too cold to have on full blast.

I have that. So the OP is now chasing a problem with his 3rd compressor....thats bullshit. So after adding up all the costs and more importantly the HASSLE.......letting the dealership do it looks pretty good.

No hassle and no sweating your ***** off inbetween repairs because you have no idea whats causing the problems.....is priceless.

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DAVE00

iTrader: (10)

Understand, however mine were not reman as well and were Factory Air brand so granted is not Delco/Delphi compressors, however both mine still carry a 2 year (unconditional warranty) and both blow ice cold as new.

my bandit

iTrader: (10)

mine have been delphi ones from napa... changing out the compressor is a 5 minute job now and everything is easier the 4th time but mine also blow ice cold when they work. im just lost as to what it could be. i know the guy that recharged it and he was looking for about 15 minutes for any sort of leak and he couldnt find one. i pumped dye into it and it still was nowhere to be found. there arent any hoses that run behind the engine for the ac is there?

bp m1009

iTrader: (2)

if your destroying compressors its probly beacuse they werent lubricated...along with r134a you MUST add PAG oil for a new compressor (PAG oil is just like putting motor oil in your engine) the compressor needs lubrication...if your compressors ate themselves up theres probly also alot of metal shavings and debris in the system it should get trapped in the accumulator so i would recommend a full system flush and replace the accumulator (accumulators cant be flushed)...as for your air blowing warm after a while you either have a leak...lots of o rings in the a/c system all of which like to leak and it can be very tricky to find the leak. i know you said that you tried dye in the system but dont forget you need a uv light and yellow glasses to see the dye effectively and your gonna need to crawl under the dash and look for dye at the evaporator, which is probly enclosed in the heater box and cant be seen...another way to find leaks is with a refrigerant sniffer that will actually "smell" refrigerant leaks when placed close enough to one. if you are certain there are no leaks check the evap temp sensor and all the other line pressure sensors, which could be giving the computer a false signal thinking your evap is getting too cold or line pressure is getting too high. this will either shut off the compressor or drastically reduce the compressors output resulting in warm air...look for a leak first, get a vacuum pump and put a vacuum on the system then see if the system holds vacuum, if not, you have a leak

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

Thats cool. I just love knowing that in 2 years, 5 years, 10 years.......any A/C problems I have is 100% covered.

I didn't know they gave 2 year warranties on aftermarket compressors.

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LS6427

iTrader: (2)

No. There all pretty much in plain site.

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O2Form

Try having the outlets in the car sniffed, evap may have a hole in it.

LS-1Z28

iTrader: (6)

What kind of repairs were done at the dealership for the A/C?

...because the dealership is going to charge more than $700 for just the part cost of the compressor.

LS-1Z28

iTrader: (6)

TS - when you replace your compressor what other parts are you replacing? Is it being flushed, oiled, and charged?

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

Yea, for the dealerships that charge MAX retail price. Every time I buy parts there, they give me the retail price....then they give me my price.

All I can remember was it was less than $800 for everything.

Compressor
All electrical wiring, which is really just one wire that plugs into the compressor
Orifice
Evap
New 134a Charge
One line that goes from the top of the condensor and attaches right near the passenger side strut tower, the one with the pressure sensor in it. They showed me corrosion on it.

My condensor is factory stock.

Call Sheehan Pontiac in Pompano Beach, only dealership I've ever been to that isn't a bunch of rip-off scumbags. My lower A/C pulley started coming loose about 3 months after they did the A/C job, (nothing to do with what they did) the bolt that goes into the block that holds the pulley on. I kept tightening it and then a couple days later I would throw the belt. I pulled into the dealership and the same A/C guy took me right into his bay, I didn't wait one minute. I jumped out and told him what was happening and he said they make a resleeve kit for that. The A/C guy put it on a lift, re-tapped the hole, put a steel sleeve in it for me and put the pulley back on. They charged me exactly ZERO, took 1 hour to do it all. Simply a good dealership, thats why I buy ALMOST everything I need from them and I will let them do whatever work needs doing that my friend cannot do.

As far as parts go.....their prices are always less then every other dealership in the county, and we have a bunch of GM dealerships. Going there is like meeting up with my friends.

Too bad their not all like that.

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LS-1Z28

iTrader: (6)

Wow, you got an awesome deal!! Unfortunately, I cannot say the same when I called the dealership... They quoted >$3000 for the amount of repairs that I needed for my A/C (and that's with the employee discount!):

Parts:
-compressor
-condenser
-drier/accumulator
-a/c compressor lines
-orifice tube

Labor:
-parts install
-flush
-charge

I was able to get everything purchased and installed on my own and then had a professional flush and charge the system. Total cost came out just under $1000 and it's still blowing ice cold a year later

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

$3,000....for an American made car.......thats insane. Thats a perfect example of a total rip-off dealership.

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DAVE00

iTrader: (10)

Yup, even though I condone doing things yourself $800 at a stealership is an incredible deal as I know on my wife's suburban they wanted over $2000 to do it when the compressor went out. And the burb is easier to get to and took me half the time the bird did to pull the compressor. Did have to flush a long line to the rear evap coil, but really not that hard.

01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

LS6427

iTrader: (2)

What?


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01ssreda4

iTrader: (96)

.....Recommending a generic dealership for a hugely over-priced repair and then going on to state that all dealerships are rip off scumbags...Well, except your prized Pontiac dealership.

Dealerships stick it in your ***. Thats the honest truth, and you admit to it. Why anyone would recommend them to anyone for something as simple as a compressor replacement is beyond me.

samson_420

iTrader: (1)

AC work is the easiest way I been making money. I work on people's cars pretty much every day now. AC work is great, I charge someone 200 Bucks for labor and I am done in about 3 hours with the exception of evaporators

The typical stealeship cost on my 200 dollar repair is way over 500 bucks in just labor.