Hi Scotty! I've been following your YouTube for sometime now, and I appreciate how honest you are. Really noble of you to give advice to people so they don't get ripped off and have a guide for doing their own repairs. Now onto my question. I have a 2005 Saturn Ion level 1, 2.2 Ecotec 4 cylinder, 5 speed manual, with 246,000 miles on it. Engine and transmission wise, it runs great with little issue. I have had to put a lot of front end work into it, as these cars are notorious for having weak front suspensions. The next project I'm researching and looking to tackle is my A/C. I have checked it over and determined that the compressor is bad, as the clutch no longer engages (it doesn't turn with the pulley when I have the A/C turned on), so it looks like it needs to be replaced. I'm thinking about buying the equipment to evacuate the system myself as well as a compressor. I've found that I can buy the new refrigerant on Amazon for fairly cheap, and I'm looking at the three pack of cans, as it seems that should be plenty to recharge the system. I know you said using the quick recharge kits that stores sell isn't a good idea. So my question is, do I need a special hook up for the new cans, or can I hook it up to a vacuum pump and reverse it to pump the new refrigerant in? And what hook up would I need for the cans if I can use a vacuum pump? I will also take any other advice you have to give for this job, including places I could take the refrigerant to so I can recycle it. Thank you for everything you do, I wish every mechanic was as honest and helpful as you are.
Jacob
P.S. You can feel free to answer this in an upcoming video if you wish.
Before you undertake replacing the compressor be sure that there's not some other reason the clutch is not engaging, like refrigerant too low (likely on a 17-year-old car) or failed electronics.
I know the refrigerant level is good, as I did try adding some to the system. I also checked the fuses and relays for the A/C system and replaced the bad ones. So a bad compressor is all I'm left with, unless you know of any other potential issues. Maybe the wiring? As far as physically, the wiring looks good, so maybe I should test the plug and make sure it's getting power. That's about the only other thing I can think of to eliminate as a possible cause. However, as you pointed out, it is a 17 year old car, and I'm pretty sure the compressor is the original factory one. Not sure how quickly AC Delco compressors wear out, but it wouldn't surprise me if it is.
I know the refrigerant level is good, as I did try adding some to the system.
Actually you don't know the refrigerant level is good unless the system is evacuated and the correct amount of refrigerant charged in by weight.
However, for the compressor to engage the concern is that there is sufficient pressure in the system so that the low-pressure safety cutoff doesn't shut down the compressor. On most cars the cutoff pressure is about 20 psi. What is your static pressure?
So a bad compressor is all I'm left with, unless you know of any other potential issues.
In addition to the mechanical parts of the AC system having to be in good condition the electronics need to work. If you have sufficient refrigerant that the compressor can operate safely you can try hot-wiring the compressor clutch. See if it engages and check system pressures. If the clutch works that way you have an electrical problem that needs to be tracked down. (Either that or put in a manual switch to trigger the compressor as Scotty has shown in his videos.) If hot-wiring doesn't work then your compressor clutch is bad, and when that's the case usually you do replace the entire compressor.
For proper operation, you need to know exactly how much refrigerant the system takes, by weight.
