Ford Galaxy 2.3 Aircon

[Guest Neal]

Hope that you can help/advise!

 

I have a 2001 Ford Galaxy 2.3 Zetec. 2 months ago I put it into the local garage to have the aircon regassed. They drove it to their "experts" in their other garage 15 miles away who failed, said that they could only get 900 somethings in rather than the 1400 it should have. I took the car back (refusing to pay)and drove it to a dedicated aircon garage - Mobile Air who dumped 850g of gas and regassed it (apparently it should only have 700 somethings in it over the 2 chambers (?), the first garage had been trying to get 700 in each?).

After picking it up from the first garage it would make flatulent noises (!)which I assume was the excess being vented away?

 

My problem is that before I tried to have it regassed the aircon wasn't very cold but there was no noise from the compressor/clutch/whatever it is in the engine. After picking it up from the first garage it was noisy, mobile air noted on their invoice that the compressor was a bit noisy and said verbally that it could last for ages or not! Since then (8 weeks) it has got steadily worse and now makes loads of noise from the front right hand corner of the car low down whether the aircon is on or off (whining, grinding, sounds like something is rattling) and last night there was smoke and a burning clutch smell after driving 10 miles.

 

I assume my Compressor has had it and I'm sure thats a nice big bill ........ my question (finally!) ...... is it possible to isolate the compressor (remove the bearing and fit a shorter fanbelt - I'll have no aircon but don't really need it at the moment and it'll give me some time to start saving up!

 

Cheers for any advice ........... Neal

[RADIOTWO]

Hope that you can help/advise!

 

I have a 2001 Ford Galaxy 2.3 Zetec. 2 months ago I put it into the local garage to have the aircon regassed. They drove it to their "experts" in their other garage 15 miles away who failed, said that they could only get 900 somethings in rather than the 1400 it should have. I took the car back (refusing to pay)and drove it to a dedicated aircon garage - Mobile Air who dumped 850g of gas and regassed it (apparently it should only have 700 somethings in it over the 2 chambers (?), the first garage had been trying to get 700 in each?).

After picking it up from the first garage it would make flatulent noises (!)which I assume was the excess being vented away?

 

My problem is that before I tried to have it regassed the aircon wasn't very cold but there was no noise from the compressor/clutch/whatever it is in the engine. After picking it up from the first garage it was noisy, mobile air noted on their invoice that the compressor was a bit noisy and said verbally that it could last for ages or not! Since then (8 weeks) it has got steadily worse and now makes loads of noise from the front right hand corner of the car low down whether the aircon is on or off (whining, grinding, sounds like something is rattling) and last night there was smoke and a burning clutch smell after driving 10 miles.

 

I assume my Compressor has had it and I'm sure thats a nice big bill ........ my question (finally!) ...... is it possible to isolate the compressor (remove the bearing and fit a shorter fanbelt - I'll have no aircon but don't really need it at the moment and it'll give me some time to start saving up!

 

Cheers for any advice ........... Neal

 

Am I not missing the point !

 

If your Air-con is not working (no Gas) then there is no presure in the system and the clutch on the compresser won't pull in, and so yes the pulley will turn but the compresser won't.

 

Radiotwo

[Guest Neal]

Hope that you can help/advise!

 

I have a 2001 Ford Galaxy 2.3 Zetec. 2 months ago I put it into the local garage to have the aircon regassed. They drove it to their "experts" in their other garage 15 miles away who failed, said that they could only get 900 somethings in rather than the 1400 it should have. I took the car back (refusing to pay)and drove it to a dedicated aircon garage - Mobile Air who dumped 850g of gas and regassed it (apparently it should only have 700 somethings in it over the 2 chambers (?), the first garage had been trying to get 700 in each?).

After picking it up from the first garage it would make flatulent noises (!)which I assume was the excess being vented away?

 

My problem is that before I tried to have it regassed the aircon wasn't very cold but there was no noise from the compressor/clutch/whatever it is in the engine. After picking it up from the first garage it was noisy, mobile air noted on their invoice that the compressor was a bit noisy and said verbally that it could last for ages or not! Since then (8 weeks) it has got steadily worse and now makes loads of noise from the front right hand corner of the car low down whether the aircon is on or off (whining, grinding, sounds like something is rattling) and last night there was smoke and a burning clutch smell after driving 10 miles.

 

I assume my Compressor has had it and I'm sure thats a nice big bill ........ my question (finally!) ...... is it possible to isolate the compressor (remove the bearing and fit a shorter fanbelt - I'll have no aircon but don't really need it at the moment and it'll give me some time to start saving up!

 

Cheers for any advice ........... Neal

 

Am I not missing the point !

 

If your Air-con is not working (no Gas) then there is no presure in the system and the clutch on the compresser won't pull in, and so yes the pulley will turn but the compresser won't.

 

Radiotwo

 

Sorry, me not explaining myself properly, the aircon was fully regassed by the 2nd garage and works now(the first had tried to put too much in which I assume is what damaged the compressor) ......... but then it's got noisier and noisier until yesterdays smoke and burnt clutch episode.

[mikej]

Hi Neal,

i don't know if this will be of any use to you mate but i have the same gal /year etc and what you have described is exactly what happened to me some months back to the letter , ie aircon fine not cold but no noise from pump , went for regass and they tried to put in roughly twice the correct amount , no end of probs pump noisey as hell smell of burning rubber as belt was slipping the car was coughing farting gas from under the bonnet all the way up the road , the air con was cold for a second or two but it was obvious something major was wrong so i vented all the gas out so the pump would no longer engage. then back to no air con and no burning smell etc .The pump from then on was noisey as hell rattling etc so i thought new pump here we come ! before i ordered a new one i spoke to a independant local aircon guy who said he had seen this loads of times , yes they had put too much gas in should have been around 700 ? cannot remember the exact figure but yes they had calculated wrong or misread it and tried to put in approx twice the correct amount , now he asked if they had put any oil in the system which they did not.This is what he then done 1. emptied the system of any remaining gas 2.added oil to the system 3.refilled to approx 700? or slightly less of the recommended quantity since then my aircon has worked fine the belt has never slipped once , no gas has escaped , no smells and most of all the pump is now quite and runs fine lol.......

i am also a few quid better off ? its upto you but you may want to try it you never know

regards

mike...... <_<

[MrT]

There must be another fault as overgassing causes over pressure and the pressure switch will not allow the clutch to engage.

[Joshua]

My aircon lost it's ability to cool gradually over the summer (car is 6 years old) so I guess that I need to get it re-gassed.

 

I was going to take it to Kwit-Fit (

[Guest Neal]

There must be another fault as overgassing causes over pressure and the pressure switch will not allow the clutch to engage.

 

Hi Mr T, As I've had the system regassed properly since the first episode won't the clutch engage now?

 

Thanks ...... Nel

[Guest Neal]

Hi Neal,

i don't know if this will be of any use to you mate but i have the same gal /year etc and what you have described is exactly what happened to me some months back to the letter , ie aircon fine not cold but no noise from pump , went for regass and they tried to put in roughly twice the correct amount , no end of probs pump noisey as hell smell of burning rubber as belt was slipping the car was coughing farting gas from under the bonnet all the way up the road , the air con was cold for a second or two but it was obvious something major was wrong so i vented all the gas out so the pump would no longer engage. then back to no air con and no burning smell etc .The pump from then on was noisey as hell rattling etc so i thought new pump here we come ! before i ordered a new one i spoke to a independant local aircon guy who said he had seen this loads of times , yes they had put too much gas in should have been around 700 ? cannot remember the exact figure but yes they had calculated wrong or misread it and tried to put in approx twice the correct amount , now he asked if they had put any oil in the system which they did not.This is what he then done 1. emptied the system of any remaining gas 2.added oil to the system 3.refilled to approx 700? or slightly less of the recommended quantity since then my aircon has worked fine the belt has never slipped once , no gas has escaped , no smells and most of all the pump is now quite and runs fine lol.......

i am also a few quid better off ? its upto you but you may want to try it you never know

regards

mike...... <_<

 

Hi Mike, thanks for letting me know, I'll definitely be trying this first! ........ cheers ....... Neal

[MrT]

If you have over or under pressure, the clutch will not engage. If you look at the unit when it is engaged the centre of the pulley (with the three nuts) spins with the outer part where the belt fits, when disengaged the centre part sits still. I had a recent clutch failure and it was cheaper to fit a remanufactured compressor (

[sepulchrave]

Jeezus! Talk about everyone mising the point!

 

Neal, you can simply pull the wiring (or cut it) to the clutch and allow it to freewheel. Your compressor has obviously seized and you can replace it in the spring.

[MrT]

Waiting until the spring is not necessarily a good idea as you can need the drying power of the air-con to keep the car mist free if its full of people in cold damp weather.

 

There is more than one question asked in this thread which can confuse the simpler minded.

[adrianf.]

Waiting until the spring is not necessarily a good idea as you can need the drying power of the air-con to keep the car mist free if its full of people in cold damp weather.

 

There is more than one question asked in this thread which can confuse the simpler minded.

ooooohhhhh i say

[sepulchrave]

........ my question (finally!) ...... is it possible to isolate the compressor (remove the bearing and fit a shorter fanbelt - I'll have no aircon but don't really need it at the moment and it'll give me some time to start saving up!

 

Cheers for any advice ........... Neal

 

Nope, I only count one question! :ph34r:

[mikej]

Mr T ,

i hold my hand up when i say i know nothing about aircon however my system was gassed by a merc dealer with all the right kit , there was virtually nothing left in the system to weigh prior to its first refill but my aircon would still engage i know this because i could hear it switching behind dash and could feel the extra load on the engine however he did put approx twice as much as he should have in the system and the aircon still engaged when it did it was like changing from fourth to first the belt would screech ,burn as it slipped causing a horrible stink and the noise from the compreesor was something else ! after i emptied the system myself by hand up untill the second guy put oil in the system (approx 3 weeks) the compressor was noisey as hell it has been quiet now for several months and my aircon is cold and works fine ??

i have to agree leaving the system dead untill spring is aking for more trouble , maybe there is another fault with my system ? i don't know but its working fine at the moment lol....

mike

[sepulchrave]

The gentleman asked how to leave the system dead, I told him. He isn't asking for trouble!

 

There is nothing wrong with isolating the faulty system and repairing it when funds allow. Yes it dehumidifies the air in automatic recirculation mode for demisting, BUT during the winter the air being used will be warm anyway and will work just fine in econ mode.

 

However did we cope before aircon? :ph34r:

[greg_68]

Isn't there an issue about using the aircon say once a month to lubricate all the seals.

 

If he leaves it until the spring none of the seals will have been lubed.

 

Come next spring he replaces the compressor and then finds it's all leaking.

 

IMO if your definitely gonna do it next year you may as well do it now.

[MrT]

Just a minor point that may not be relevant to you is that it is possible to think the compressor is being engaged by the change in engine note, but there is also the second radiator fan that starts at the same time as the compressor is engaged and this electrical load and noise can give the impression that the compressor is loading the engine.

 

 

However did we cope before aircon? :wacko:

 

I think the Galaxy was designed for a climate unlike the UK or is just badly designed. I have not had this problem on other cars. Even last week (early Sat 30th) I had my rear passenger windows misting up driving up the A1 set at "Econ" and 20C front and rear and the weather was misty but not raining with the outside temp at 13C. Switching to auto soon cleared it. The non air con Galaxies must have a real problem in certain conditions.

 

I don't have a wet filter or carpet or any other damp problems to my knowldge.

[Guest Neal]

Many thanks to everybody for the responses ......... Sorry for these subsequent questions but I've got the offer of a cheap new clutch assy for the compressor - if I fit this is the clutch bearing independent of the Compressor bearing ie the rattling noise that I've got even when the aircon is off (I've disconnected the clutch wire as the compressor has seized and I don't want the kids engaging it by fiddling!) will stop as the clutch bearing is new? Is this lubricated by the compressor at all ie would the clutch bearing go again quickly if I don't replace the compressor.

 

If it would solve the noise problem (I wouldn't have aircon which I'm not bothered about as I'm part exing it- just think that I'll get more for it if it doesn't rattle!) is is straightforwardish to replace the compressor clutch? (I'm fairly handy but not a mechanic by any stretch of the imagination!)

 

Thanks ........ Neal