AC compressor dead - can I run car safely and just not replace?

[theparkster]

Ford garage advise AC compressor is dead and new compressor + condesner is AUD 3.5k (car was only AUD 6.5k); can I just run the car and leave AC off, is this safe?

 

[Handy Andy]

In short, no.

- long story why?

• Two bearings
  • - one lives outside in the open engine compartment
  • - Another? lives inside the housing
  • One rides the Serpentine Belt and uses the "Clutch" to grab power and to also lubricate itself once the clutch seats the shaft and bearing together to turn.
  • The inside bearings can live forever - as long as they have lubrication.
  • Problems is, once the AC refrigerant is gone, so is the ability to carry the oil suspended in it to these bearings to lubricate them
• You don't know when the system will engage the pump (AC Compressor)
• If it does and no oil present - will not only damage the pump, but the system will "drag" due to lack of lubricant and can even make the engine stall.
• possibly can break the belt - and or tension the serpentine belt to stretch to a point where it damages the bearings in the other devices still hooked up (Alternator - Water Pump - even the Harmonic Balancer itself)
• And when there is only oil, the pressures inside the pump can make the system run erratically and still damage the pump and serpentine belt.

It's only a matter of time.

Got an old Ford Focus laying around? It has a tensioner dummy pulley you can possibly fit in it.

Where? Just open the hood and look to the Left...

 

[scotman]

There was a thread here that discusses the A/C compressor delete done on B spec Fiesta race cars. There is a cast aluminum bracket with a dummy pulley that replicates the compressor position and pulley diameter exactly, minus the weight and drag, of course.
I would suggest that you install a new serpentine belt of the original size if you choose to go in this direction, reused belts tend to be either noisemakers or jump off the pulleys.
It’s Dorman #34298

 

[theparkster]

In short, no.

- long story why?

• Two bearings
  • - one lives outside in the open engine compartment
  • - Another? lives inside the housing
  • One rides the Serpentine Belt and uses the "Clutch" to grab power and to also lubricate itself once the clutch seats the shaft and bearing together to turn.
  • The inside bearings can live forever - as long as they have lubrication.
  • Problems is, once the AC refrigerant is gone, so is the ability to carry the oil suspended in it to these bearings to lubricate them
• You don't know when the system will engage the pump (AC Compressor)
• If it does and no oil present - will not only damage the pump, but the system will "drag" due to lack of lubricant and can even make the engine stall.
• possibly can break the belt - and or tension the serpentine belt to stretch to a point where it damages the bearings in the other devices still hooked up (Alternator - Water Pump - even the Harmonic Balancer itself)
• And when there is only oil, the pressures inside the pump can make the system run erratically and still damage the pump and serpentine belt.

It's only a matter of time.

Got an old Ford Focus laying around? It has a tensioner dummy pulley you can possibly fit in it.

Where? Just open the hood and look to the Left...

<<<Thanks - put if I pull the fuse for the AC, then the clutch will never be triggered by accident and the external fly wheel would just spin freely?>>>

 

[Handy Andy]

The bearing in it does need to be "engaged" at least (in run time hours) for at least a minute to seat the bearing in its gear after about 10 hours of run time - idle or drive or whatever time - that is RUN time, when the engines is started so is its timer - until the motor shuts off.

The AC also runs when you use the Defroster or anytime the windshield Icon in the Climate control - is on. So pulling the Fuse is the only way to keep the clutch of the compressor from engaging when there is no oil or refrigerant with oil - to circulate.

This clutch engage process lets the shaft turn with the bearing engaged or seated so this it's not the only thing rotating - the shaft it sits in has the roller bearings that turn with that main bearing - drawing out it's lube into the bearing together so it will "align and engage" properly next time - it's a needed process else the solenoid / magnet when it tries pulling the clutch in, won't mesh - then that is where the failure occurs. The seat ran dry.

The above comes from DIRECT experience from my own vehicles - in trying to save fuel costs and money by skipping the AC - that is where I made an epic fail in both the compressor, allowing it to run dry as in seized - and the water pump was taken out with it.

In some motors the AC delete just means you have to remove the part and use a different size smaller belt and, in a way, - makes everything in what is left of the serpentine - work more efficiently. Ford doesn't let you do that, which is a shame because these motors would last a really long - long time if such things like the AC was taken off and let the end user just own a vehicle to drive with just the basics - at in my life work. I never was "Forced" to use AC - until I had a Toyota-one seize on me in the middle of a traffic snarl - hard lesson but hey, 209,000 miles on the ODO - I guess it was worth it.

In GM Toyota and Chrysler - even KIA (At least the ones I owned) - all the AC units could get pulled and left out - you just ran a different belt to make all the rest work in the system.

Length of time? Enough to lubricate the seals - it Has to run for at least one minute - even then the lifetime is still finite - so with the compressor costing so much in Australian currency - it may be better to try and use a rebuilt unit or run with a AC delete "dummy" roller as @scotman mentions.

You can disconnect the fuse, but the bearing will eventually run dry - so don't overlook this...

It’s Dorman #34298

Thanks!

 

[Handy Andy]

Although this debate continues with some strong opinions both back and forth...

One thing I remember from the older days of Chevy Novas circa 1975 - they had "pull on" floor vents with a ducting that routed the radiator to the ductwork that allowed air into the passenger compartment at a considerable volume, and you could heat or not heat it - as you choose to.

One problem with people thinking that AC is for sissies or that the AC is useless (I tend to fall into that category) because it wastes gas, remember this.

When travelling is a desert, remember to keep water on hand and protect exposed skin, not just from the sunlight, but from those hot winds too!

When Air gets above the body temperature - life thru a windshield begins to look more like you're in a Microwave oven, you cook, as that air gets above 110F ° you can cook well - and I mean - you can suffer a cruel fate.

So does AC work? Yes, it too loses efficiency as that temp rises and sometimes it is a NEEDED function when the only shade you have is the hot car itself.

Your post profile tells us that you live in Australia - there's a lot of deserts down under - and you can get caught in an extreme environment where AC is the only thing that keeps the passenger compartment cool enough to make it across. As we in the Norther hemisphere transition from summer to winter - your summer is arriving - soon.

So, if you know the climate of the region and can trust the environment - then the AC issue is all yours to decide.

Just sorry to tell you Fiestas' AC units aren't easily deleted.