ac compressor replacement 1998 malibu

[terry274]

I have decided to replace the ac compressor, accumulator and orifice tube on my daughters 1998 Chevy Malibu. (2.4 four cylinder engine) The car has 181,000 miles on it, we bought it about three months ago. If I add a can of R-134a the compressor will come on and cool for a day, but it will loose the R-134a very quickly. I took the car to a shop for a diagnosis and they told me the compressor was leaking badly.
This is my first time opening an ac system. I have been reading on the internet and realize that I will need to flush the lines to remove any contaminates. Note that the system has not failed, it does not make any unusual noise.
What fluid is best to flush the system?
Can anyone give me any tips or tricks to make the job easier?
Any thing I need to watch out for?
Thanks,
Terry

 

[EricF]

Well.. any type of A/C flush will work. there's no good or bad flush in terms of brand. I prefer Interdynamics however.

You should also replace the orifice tube, which should be mandatory anyway. AND I'd also replace the receiver/drier because it's been contaminated as well. You'll also be putting 8-10oz of new pag oil in too. meausre out what comes out of the compressor and drier. it should be written on the a/c sticker for how much freon goes back in in US Pounds.

Flushing the lines is easy, however you'll have to find the type that's preloaded in a sprayer, otherwise you'll have to buy a pneumatic flush gun. where you fill up the gun with some compressed air and some flush liquid and shoot it thru the lines.

Make sure you keep ALL receipts because there (usually) is no warranty on a compressor without the drier, orifice tube being replaced as well as a flush and full evacuation.
Without proof, you have merely a taillight warranty.

Most shops in my area refuse to do an evacuate without a refill and vacuum test.

 

[Chris142]

Use AC solvent to flush it out. Since the system has not had a total disaster a flush may not be needed other than your own piece of mind.

 

[SrDriver]

Is there a local shop there that can rebuild the compressor and replace the worn seals?

 

[terry274]

I got a new Delphi compressor from Amazon.com for $191.00 with free shipping, I thought this would be better than replacing the seals in the old compressor.

 

[dnastrau]

This chart shows 9 oz. of PAG 150 oil for that system:

http://napabeltshose.com/downloads/downl...mp;view=napa_hc

Measuring what oil is left in a leaky system and only putting back what was there could result in a burned up new compressor in short order.

 

[Chris142]

Originally Posted By: terry274
I got a new Delphi compressor from Amazon.com for $191.00 with free shipping, I thought this would be better than replacing the seals in the old compressor.
I agree. Much better than a rebuilt. I don't even think any shops will rebuild a compressor anymore. They may buy one from the parts store though.

 

[terry274]

This a follow up post. I completed this job yesterday. I flushed the system with AC flush from O'Reillys auto parts. I used a pump up garden sprayer to push the flush in and then blew it out with an air compressor. It took a LOT of air to get all the stuff out. I had to stop and let the compressor rest several times. The flush smelled like citrus.
Installed the new compressor, orifice tube and accumulator. Used a loaner tool from AutoZone to vacuum the system. Run the vacuum thirty minutes, let set ten minutes. Repeated this several times. The pump pulled down to 29 HG and held the first time but I repeated the process to be sure I had the best vacuum I could get.
I had added eight ounces of PAG150 oil to the system when I had it apart, so I put one more ounce in with the refill hose for a total of nine ounce. Yeah, the car holds nine ounce and all the bottles come in an eight ounce size. Put 28 ounce of R134a in and went for a test drive to AutoZone to return the gauges and pump. A refrigeration thermometer stuck in the middle vent got down to 45 degrees, right in the middle of the "blue" zone on the thermometer.
The job took about six hours. It would have been faster but I nearly cross threaded one of the bolts holding the compressor to the engine. Had to remove the bolt and clean the hole with compressed air and choke cleaner. No other major problems, just the usual "can't quite get to the bolt" problems where you are required to donate skin and blood to move the wrench.
Altogether, not a bad job with an above average satisfaction feeling.
Terry

 

[onion]

Was there any oil in the new compressor? How much? What kind?

 

[terry274]

The compressor was a Delphi and it was shipped without oil. I added about 3 ounces of PAG150 before I installed the compressor. I also turned it by hand a little to move the oil around.
Terry