Stalls when AC turned on, after loud noise...

[hawkman71]

I could hear a noise coming from my wife's expy when she arrived home today. I could tel something wasn't right and when I got to the back door, she had the window open because she wanted to tell me about it. It's hard to describe the sound but it was a chss-chss-chss... quite rapid and loud. She had popped the hood latch and I lifted it. It sounded like it was coming from the fan but i couldn't see if something was stuck in there b/c of all the plastic shrouds.

I told her to turn it off.
Immediately, the sound was gone.

I said turn it on.
Immediately, the motor stalled!

She started it, tried to turn on the AC (pressing "Auto") and it stalled again.

I had her rev it a little bit and turn on the AC the next time and this time it faltered but ran. Then, I could smell stuff and see what I thought was smoke. (For a brief second, I was worried it was low on oil but I had just changed it and new I put the 7qt in there.)

Later, I turned it on with no AC and drove it. Drove fine. I came home, turned on the AC and it did NOT falter at all. But the AC did not work and smelled a little funny.

Is this a compressor issue maybe? How can I diagnose it?

 

[07navi]

Sounds like the compressor went. Take a look at the clutch on the front of it when the ac is turned on. Does it start spinning? Also take the belt off and spin it to feel any roughness. You need a set of gauges to check your hi and low refrigerant pressures, they should be about 35 and 200+- on a cool morning. Take a hose or long screwdriver and put it against the compressor and listen or a stethoscope if you have one.

 

[hawkman71]

Sounds like the compressor went...

Thanks, Navi. Will do. Looks to be a $2-300 part (the compressor alone). If it is the problem - and I think it is - then how difficult a job is this to replace? I imagine the refrigerant has to be evacuated and maybe some other parts needed to be replaced when opening up the AC system.

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[07navi]

Thanks, Navi. Will do. Looks to be a $2-300 part (the compressor alone). If it is the problem - and I think it is - then how difficult a job is this to replace? I imagine the refrigerant has to be evacuated and maybe some other parts needed to be replaced when opening up the AC system.

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It has to be evacuated and it's always a good idea to replace the drier/accumulator at the same time.

 

[hawkman71]

That's the part I was thinking of.

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[JExpedition07]

I replaced the compressor in my 2007 myself, I got a Ford OEM on RockAuto. Pull the fan shroud out and it’s accessible. The filter drier is located in the right side of the condenser, you need a little star bit and turn the bottom of it left and that will allow the filter drier to drop out. It tucked up in the right side you need to look from below. To access that just pull the rubber matting loose behind the grille area.

 

[hawkman71]

...Pull the fan shroud out and it’s accessible. The filter drier is located in the right side of the condenser, you need a little star bit and turn the bottom of it left and that will allow the filter drier to drop out. It tucked up in the right side you need to look from below. To access that just pull the rubber matting loose behind the grille area.

Thanks. It's been raining on/off the last two days and my in-laws' farm shop has been full of equipment so today is the first day I'll get a chance to look at it.

Can I get it evacuated even if I'm not ready to do the rest of the work? (Shop might be able to do it today but I can't get parts immediately).

Advance/Carquest has the compressor at 350-400! I'll check RockAuto.

Will I need to replace the expansion valve?
What is the desiccant cartridge? (see pic)

Since I have a front/rear system, I fear the level of complexity is beyond what I need to tackle.

Do I need to flush the lines if the compressor blew? Isn't there a chance that 'shrapnel' has gotten in my lines?

Sorry for all the questions but thanks for your time!

Meanwhile, I still have my Escape to tackle. We've had such a cool spring and I've had a busy spring for work, that I haven't tackled it yet. (damaged condenser). This might be easier... it's just that my Exped is the main family vehicle. Good thing they aren't driving much right now.

 

[hawkman71]

duplicate post. can't delete. (?)

 

[07navi]

...and dang! I never thought about the rear...i see on Rock Auto there are expansion valves for the rear and front. Imma need that Haynes manual....(Or a lot from you guys).

The expansion valves aren't necessary bad since it was working fine before, if you had the orifice tube instead I would say yes for sure.. The dryer or accumulator (depending on which you have) should be replaced because they are cheap and have the desiccant in them which fills up and won't keep the refrigerant from getting dirty and wet (like a water logged sponge). I have doubts about evacuating it in advance because water is the biggest enemy of the system and condensation could build up plus it might not hold a vacuum that long...……..bad idea. I think they make a rear block off kit for this if you want to go that route. (easier maintenance, less refrigerant, etc.)

 

[hawkman71]

The expansion valves aren't necessary bad since it was working fine before, if you had the orifice tube instead I would say yes for sure.. The dryer or accumulator (depending on which you have) should be replaced because they are cheap and have the desiccant in them which fills up and won't keep the refrigerant from getting dirty and wet (like a water logged sponge). I have doubts about evacuating it in advance because water is the biggest enemy of the system and condensation could build up plus it might not hold a vacuum that long...……..bad idea. I think they make a rear block off kit for this if you want to go that route. (easier maintenance, less refrigerant, etc.)

Thanks, Navi. I'll think on this a bit. Shop isn't open to evacuate anyway.