Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

during a trip yesterday, smoke started belowing from the front right hand side of the engine, when pulled over there was actually quite alot of smoke, after getting everyone out of the car just incase it was a fire, i carefully check under car for flames then opend the bonnet, the smoke was coming from the A/C compressor, and you could here it bubbling as it was really hot.

after waiting a while by the roadside it cooled down and stopped smokeing, however something was leaking as there was oily residue on the floor, it looked like it was coming from the same area as the compressor, so i think it's leaking, howeever after having to drive it home, and checking it again in the there was nothing on the floor, i can only assume that whatever is leaking has run out, also listening to the compressor, it's now sounds really rough...

I dont want to kill the engine, but i cant afford a new compressor, what should i do?

I'm going to have to sell the car anhow but cant sell it like that only for spares, unless i'ts still save to run the car with that damages if it is damaged.

anyone have any thoughts on this.

Ta Paul.

RE: Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

hi Paul sounds like the clutch on the ac pump nothing you can do but replace the unit or strip it down to see if its bearings.

should get a used unit for about £85.

Thanks

Mick

RE: Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

AC compressors are running very hot as it is and if they are left without lubrification, they can't last but for very short time. that lubricant is usually inside the refrigerant and if there was a leak somewhere, AC is gone dry.
usually, it doesn't leak liquid so I don't know about your leak.

but, rough work of AC compressor normaly means that it's dead and that you will need a new one.

RE: Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

ok, great.. hmm, what about usig a different belt to take the A/C unit out of the equastion until i can afford a new compressor? if so what belt cani use?

RE: Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

has anyone got a diagram of the routing for the fan belt ?

RE: Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

routing of the belt should be on the sticker above the radiator, with and without AC, if it's possible.
if not, remind me of your type and year and I will send you a picture.

you mean that, even you turn the AC off, the compressor is still running? it should go off.
if not, man, you have a problem.
either your way (new, shorter belt) or you have to take it to the shop, if they can disengage it on the clutch. if you keep driving like that, you may burn the compressor and the whole car.

RE: Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

ok so it's got to be either fixed or disengaged.

RE: Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

i didnt even have the A/C on when it started smoking, ofcourse the compressor still turns with the rest of the engine, but i did not have the a/c on, i had normal heating on to demist the windows, as i had a full car.

RE: Smoke coming from A/C Compressor ?
 

regardless
if you had defrost option (air drying the winshield), system automatically turns AC on.

the only way you can tell that AC compressor is ON, is from the grinding noise comming out of it. becouse the outer part, where the belt drives it, is only a clutch. that clutch spins all the time, together woith the engine.
it's only when it gets the signal, it engages drive to the compressor.

I know this is an old thread, but my wife and I picked up a used 08 T&C in fall of '09. It had been running well until about 2 weeks ago when the wife took it in for the drain tube grommet recall. She also had an oil change done at the same time. As simple as they were saying the recall job was, they also said it would take about 2.5 hours to do, which really confused me. ANYWAY, an hour after driving off the dealership lot, the A/C dies. I got a chance to look at it shortly thereafter and did hear the compressor clicking on for a while, but after a day or so I heard it no more, until I put a half a can of 134a in the system, which had no effect on A/C cooling, but which produced a very distinguishable "hissing" coming from the system. I couldn't pinpoint the source of the sound, and couldn't feel any cold air anywhere around the lines. The hissing would increase when the compressor would kick on, and would subside (3-5 seconds) after turning it off. A day later, the comp. didn't kick on anymore.


FAST FORWARD TO THIS MORNING


The wife is driving to class, about a half hour south of where I work, and calls to say that "the engine is smoking". She was saying that she had the A/C switched "on" at the time (compressor still doesn't kick on) to get some air flow before it happened. I suspect right off the bat that it's related to the A/C issues we've been having. All she could tell me was that the smoke was coming from the front of the motor. First thought from this was that the thermostat had crapped and wasn't allowing the fluid to cycle through, but could my problem be similar to the original poster's problem? The difference is that our compressor does not come on.


Any thoughts and/or advice are appreciated!

K25/K31 recall has NOTHING to DO with your A/C.... well ...Almost nothing.....It is a redesigned "Drain Tube" for the A/C "WATER" to drain out of the car. We were having issues with it spilling over into the interior. The procedure is Non Invasive , and will not affect your A/C function in any way.

Did You have the discharge hose recall done as well???? How many miles on the vehicle?

A/C recalls
 

What blows me away is if this was such a simple procedure, why was my wife told that it would take 2.5 hours to do?

I was told by a Chrysler tech that my van, the 3.3L v6, doesn't get the discharge hose recall, although he gave me documentation that listed that motor (for the 08 LX) as one of the recalled vehicles. Does this recall (discharge hose) require opening the system? It seems to me that 2.5 hours is a time estimate given for significant work done on a vehicle, not getting under the dash and replacing a hose and grommet.

just because its a recall for an 08 van does not make it for all of the vans made in 08 there is a production date they they fallow for the recall.
Any hose on the ac system requires it to be open up and all freon evacuated and then refilled yes.

I believe the production date cutoff for the discharge hose recall pertaining to T&C's with the 3.3L v6's was sometime in '09. My vehicle was an 08 model.

Either way, even if our current problems are completely unrelated to what was done, the fact that the problems occurred within an hour of leaving the dealership puts the pressure on the dealership's customer service, not on the customer. The dealership (and possibly the manufacturer) stands to lose the customer's future business if they don't at least offer a compromise. At a minimum, I'd like them to meet me half way with whatever the problem turns out to be, and you can believe that it won't be the dealership that makes the diagnosis. Maybe if they charged less than $100 to do it (diagnosis), I'd be ok with it. I'll keep that money in my pocket, because attorneys aren't cheap either.

Ok a few Misconceptions we are going to clean up for you.....

First...If you looked at your recall notice, they estimated approximately 1 hour to complete.The 2.5 was probably given to you by the svc writer, Based upon Scheduling. If you did not have an appointment, and there were four other cars ahead of you, and only Two techs available...... You get the picture.

The recall K04 for the discharge hose, is dependant on several factors. One is build date, another is assembly plant, and a third is which hose was in production channels for that particular plant on Your build date.. We have customers who had the hose replaced under warranty...PRIOR to the recall...who are now ineligible for the recall, while others in the same situation, are eligible.

It boils down to this...If The svc writewr types in your Vin number....The recall will either show eligible or not.....So there is no point in reading the fine print as for dates and times, and building a stance over it...If it doesnt show Valid for your Vin...Then it doesnt apply.

Now....As for Attourneys, and compensation.....Just from A technicians point of view, since I have Nothing to gain, and even Less to lose...Dont hold your breath...Because any attorney who would take a case like this, is going to beat you up worse than the dealership who allegedly broke your car. There is NOTHING in the recall procedure that requires a Technician to turn the A/C on...So it was NEVER checked for operation. You cant prove they maliciously broke it, You cant prove that it ever worked to begin with....
And No -one in their right mind is going to assume responsibility for sommething until they are told by the "HIGHER-UPS" that they HAVE TO.
Now...Having said That.....No promises...But....
This is why every Manufacturer of "MAJOR PURCHASE" items all over the world..have 1-800 Customer support lines....Its on the back page of your owners Manual. Or..You can go into the dealership again and request it.... Call them, and see what they tell you. They are usually very understanding, and are in a position to rectify most situations over the phone...But be gentle...and express your dissatisfaction....NOT YOUR ANGER...That will usually get you bounced to the "Dont Return Call List":)

or U can do even better go buy the hose yourself and put it on 2 nuts and it comes off recharge the ac system with 2.88 lbs of freon and away u go. 4677577AC 20 bucks or so for the part

Thanks for the thorough response.

Yes, I was very calm and logical when I explained my position to the service attendant. But, as usual, this gets you nowhere. A short temper has its place. Case in point: while I was at the dealership, an older lady having had a check on her vehicle, comes in and goes ballistic when told that she has to pay the $100 "diag" fee. Service att. waives the fee. With a cool head I request that, under my circumstances, they waive the fee for me as well (I hadn't yet had the diagnosis done). But the response to me was different - I was told that when they waive it, the money comes out of their own pocket. Obviously, he thought I was born yesterday. But sometimes letting your anger out works to your advantage.

As for the DIY on the hose, I'm not a tech., but doesn't opening the system for repair/replace of a component require special equipment to evacuate the system (at which point the dryer should be replaced) before recharging?

The legal angle. No, I can't PROVE that the system was working when we brought the vehicle in. But the receipt states that the system did work when we left the lot. Do you think a judge or magistrate will believe that a DEALERSHIP would do a free fix or repair for an inoperative A/C system without either conveying verbally or on the receipt that the work was done? The importance of good standing with the customer and PR is never overvalued, especially for dealerships, and ESPECIALLY for Chrysler.

It is unlikely that it will get that far, as I have faith in the "system" to right the wrongs for the sake of honest customer concerns. But sometimes, peace is found by carrying around a big stick.

Thanks for the information from you both!

If her repair was under WARRANTY...yes they can waive it....Unfortunately , with a cash ticket..(You never did answer me on the mileage) ..the diagnosis would have to be absorbed by someone if it were waived.

There would be no reason to evaluate the system for a Drain tube recall. There must be more to the story than we are hearing.
From a techs point of view...The Grommet recall pays Peanuts, and Nobody is in a hurry to get to it... In all honesty..the tech made more money changing your oil , than he did doing your recall....Now...Having said that....If it was just the grommet recall....I wouldnt even check your tire pressures, let alone Evaluate your A/C. There is No reason or relationship that would even require the car to be running for the recall procedure. Why they would put that in print remains a Mystery to me, but if ya Got it...By all means use it.

Answers
 

The tech was telling me that by waiving the woman's fee, it would be coming out of his pocket. He wasn't talking about waiving it for me. Also, the mileage on my vehicle is in the mid 60K's.

I'd like you both to please re-read my original post and give me your best opinion of the problem based on what I've stated. I will add that the wife claims that there was a fluid dripping from a line just forward of where both lines go into the firewall down onto something hot that apparently was the source of the smoke. ADDITIONALLY, after I turned the vehicle off today, for at least a full minute, I heard a sound like water flowing just forward of the driver's seat (same spot as where wife saw dripping?) and it sounded like a decent sized amount of whatever it was. Of course, I was not running the A/C at all.

Any thoughts?

Did you get the recall notice in the mail, or were you informed when you brought the car in for the oil to be changed.

There are 2 different versions of the drain tube recall, K25 or K31. The difference being release date, and the vehicles affected.

Google those 2 numbers and read the service procedures.When you do, ,you will understand....... There is Absolutely NOTHING outside of the vehicle , or under the hood, that is related to anything that was done for the recall.

As for "Streaming Water Noise" , If the A/c wasnt in use, it does not produce condensate water, and If it the compressor doesnt run, same thing, No condensate. So what youre hearing cannot be from the A/C system. The Drain tube CAN and DOES share some of the duty of discharging rain water from the cowl, so if there were any "Puddles" in the cowl, that Might account for the Noise.

Not trying to Hash anything over and over again...But.....

"Counter Personell" are usually either "Salaried" or Hourly Paid. On the other hand, TECHS are flat rate or "Production" paid. 100$ is typical for 1 hour of labor at a dealership. For whatever reason, If I were to spend an Hour looking at your car, and the diagnosis fee were waived, I dont get paid for that hour. I worked for free. So yes..it does come out of the techs Pocket. It doesnt make a difference to the service writers, Because their money is Guaranteed, by salary, or the fact that their warm blooded Bodies are present and accounted for.

Now...PR , customer Support, and all the Niceities are a wonderful thing, it keeps you happy, It keeps the corporate reputation high....But...Honestly from a techs point of view....I'm losing 1 hour of pay, for a coincidence that has Nothing to do with the work I performed...
I 'm not trying to be rude....But ..Chrysler keeps their reputation, You are kept happy, and I have to bring Cheese and crackers home for dinner.....Because YOUR CAR is BROKEN????