A/C Quits After Driving A While
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- Опубліковано 5 вер 2024
- In this video I have a look at a 2007 Subaru Forester that came in with a customer complaint of no A/C after driving it for 20 min or so. After letting it run in the shop for 40 min or so it finally quit! Let's see what's wrong. -Enjoy!
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Mrs O comes out with her clean hands and perfect nails and grabs that hammer and punch like a BOSS!
mr o gave her lots of practice about grabbing hammers with those clean hands
Well she didn’t break out the 4 pd hammer 😁
"TAP it 'til it's loose, baby!"
She’s a keeper
That had me laughing having 4 hands on the screen, Mrs. O working the hammer and punch and then just see his hands flail back and forth trying to wiggle the cover off.
This post is proof that I'm getting old at only 35.
Its unfortunate that the trend in the automotive world is going towards replace rather than repair. I've only been repairing cars professionally since 2005, but even then, we still replaced ac compressor clutches rather than just throwing a whole compressor on it. We replaced contacts in starter solenoids rather that just replacing the entire starter. There were still machine shops to rebuild engine components, shops rebuilding transmissions, electricians who could rebuild electric motors, generators and alternators, and they weren't hard to find.
Now, even for those of us who still know how to repair things, the parts aren't available anymore. Good luck finding an ac compressor clutch, starter motor brushes, starter solenoid contacts, etc. Many of the electricians who knew how to rebuild motors have retired, and many machine and transmission shops have closed down because the price of "rebuilt" or new parts from overseas have gotten so cheap and our customers have gotten so cheap that it doesn't make financial sense anymore. Of course, most of the cheap rebuilt and new parts are cheap for a reason; they are made with inferior parts and rebuilt or assembled by people getting paid a dollar a day. You can even see the "replace, not repair" trend in many customers. There is a car at my shop right now, customer recently bought it. It's less than 10 years old (7 I think) and the engine is knocking. They are probably going to just walk away from the car and buy something else. 7 year old car, and it's already getting junked. Granted, it is a Fiat, but still. It's a disturbing trend.
Sorry to be a downer, but great video once again.
I'm a brand new tech working at a dealership and we replace literally everything. Instead of a valve body, we do the whole transmission. Engine is knocking? New block. It's insane the amount of waste that is being produced in this industry alone.
There is no evidence in this video that Eric does NOT just have four arms, two with immaculately well done nails, which he simply hides when not needed.
He is a man of many fashion styles.
“When I nod my head , you hit it” what could possibly go wrong! 🤣🤣
A la three stooges!😅
When I nod my head you kick it between the goalposts got it?
Who could resist?
Classic comedy
?????? love it
As my father used to say, "Why is there never enough time and money to do it right but always enough time and money to do it over?"
Dude you are so right,,,Hurry Hurry wait,,,I'm Sorta retired and your dad must have work in the steell industry,,,Band aid solutions,,I Have seen band aid solution out live the machine,,don't work right,,but good enough to keep going..
Wise father 👍🏻
@@durango8882 Priceless wisdom
There is no money for do overs, the guy that has to do it over just eats the time as unpaid labor and he didn't do it right because he doesn't get paid to do it right, only fast.
Blame the dog shit that is flat rate as usual.
That's a great question
A bit of useless information in today’s world. There is a puller that screws into the ac clutch, the opening where the bolt is should be threaded and the tool had 2 different hub thread patterns on it. Adjustment washer located behind that clutch. It’s a machined washer and having something just laying around is slim to none. I started as a “pro” in 1991 and we did a lot of fixes and repairs in that shop.
Today’s market, what you said is 100%, the clutch would cost you about what the compressor costs before getting into labor costs. Still have the same problem with that, finding a shim and adjusting that gap. If memory serves I think we did .008” and we had a box of specific ac clutch adjusting shims. Anyway, the heat created by slipping clutch cooks the snot out of the coil and also hits that front compressor seal hard. So labor, clutch kit and compressor seal would put you way over comp. replacement cost.
I always enjoy the content man thanks for posting videos for us. I learn a lot from you
Agree. 13 + year old car, shaft seal is most likely leaking. So best fix IS a new compressor. Remember he said ac system was 7 oz low when serviced. Where did it leak ? Shaft seal would be a good guess.
I rented the tool from Autozone (not a sponsor) to get the clutch off, however I could not get the compressor seal out. Rockauto sent me the wrong compressor. O'Reilley's (not a sponsor) for the win!
Yep we use to replace clutch on a/c years ago but today's cost of compressors makes it a win win situation.
I haven't replaced one in probably 15 years now and we live in southwest Florida.
@@terryharvey4811 Ooh - good point. Getting into this with a 13 year old compressor gives me the willies.
i recently tried a compressor clutch repair but then found out the comp was locked up, felt like a dummy. would agree these days just replace the comp.
As a DIY I'd do the compressor too. Easy job. Much quicker than playing around with the clutch on an ancient compressor.
Exactly. 30 bucks is nothing. Basically get a refresh of a compressor that will last you years to come (hopefully) vs a fix that may last you months (if that)
As long as it's new and not remanufactured. I've been through 3 reman compressors on my pickup and all of them have leaked where the two pieces of the body bolt together. I'm tired of replacing it so I'm just living with the small leak.
@@Krankie_V yes brand new is best for sure. If you are sure it's the halves you could try red angel stop leak it works very well, I used it for an evaporator leak. Highly recommend.
@@robertbell525 I've heard that a/c sealants will clog recovery machines. I don't want that hassle!
I took a break from being a mechanic for thr last 8 years because I found the job was too stressful, my diagnostic game just wasn't there. I have been watching basically every SMA video over thr last 5 years and just recently decided to hop back into the trade. I'm amazed by how much my diagnostic skills have improved. Before I start any job, I stand back and ask "what woukd Eric O do" and the job gets done every time.
That would make a great logo for a hat or t shirt. WWEOD
Three threaded pusher holes on the clutch. Did it on my '03 Forester. Removed a shim and clutch works as it should.
I did the same on an 07 impreza
I've often heard of the "old reach around," but now we actually get to see it.
Glad you said it!
The classic reach around
If I'd be "DIYing" that I'd put whole compressor. I've learned my lesson that there is time to save money and then there are times when saving a little can cause you lose more money. And then you'd end up doing the same job twice.
Totally. Already comeback, if he just did the clutch It's pretty much guaranteed the O-rings would start leaking in the week and he'd have to replace the compressor anyhow.
Oddly enough, the only part of my 95 ZJ a/c system that I do trust is the compressor. The rest of the pieces are being replaced. Something newer, I'll just change the bad piece, but yeah, not worth changing just the clutch anymore unless you get it from the junk yard, just to get you buy for another year.
AMEN!!! Trying to save money when you're DIYing ends in increased costs and naughty words for the repeat labor!
That's a hard lesson for tightwads like me to learn. Can't we just silicone rubber it?
Had a similar issue with the A/C clutch on my `04 Corolla, opted to go for the whole compressor cause the pricing was about the same as Eric said (which I find crazy). I had it done in a shop, cause as DIY'er I dont have the tools/equipment to recover/charge the A/C system, and I doubt most DIY'ers have access to refrigerant recovery tools.
Never thought I''d see a stuck part defeat Eric.
Just remember if he cant do we cant do it. lol
FYI, or for the diy viewers information, a lot of times the clutch face itself will be threaded in the center to a larger diameter bolt size than the mounting bolt in the shaft. That way the mounting bolt just passes through the center and the shoulder of the bolt / washer combination holds the clutch face securely to the compressor splined shaft. When the clutch face gets stuck like that on the shaft, you thread a larger diameter bolt to the clutch face and the bolt bottoms out on the compressor shaft and acts like a puller to easily remove the stuck clutch face. Most I’ve come across are threaded to the diameter of the larger compressor mounting bolts. Great video as always.
My wife's Volvo V70 had the same problem. The gap had become too wide for the clutch to engage. A hack I found was to wrap thin metal wires around the bolts between the clutch and the plate where the clutch rests when not engaged and so make the gap narrower. Did that 3 years ago and it still works perfectly. Took me something like an hour to figure out how to do that exactly and costs were zero!
Very good. My hat is off to you.
I felt like I was watching Patrick Swayze in ghost with the four arms trying to get the clutch off
I kinda thought the same thing.
Haha..
That's kind of ruined Ghost for me but now but I'm strangely attracted to AC repairs
I wasn't paying attention there for a moment, then turned my eyes to the screen again and my brain skipped a tooth ... how the hell is he doing all of that with just two hands ? :D I immediately recovered into the scene from Ghost and I only saw it once as a child like 30 years ago.
I was expecting the MCM foot to get involved.
😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣🤣
Always enjoy Mrs. O coming to your rescue. I too frequently get my wife dirty "helping" me under the hood of our cars. :) Thanks for sharing.
So, you're getting dirty with your wife under the hood of a car?? Now THAT'S kinky! :)
As a DIYer, I have learned over the years the cheap way usually costs you more in the long run.
DONT BUY CHEAP JUNK SPEND MORE FOR BETTER QUALITY
Always good to see Mrs. O, even if it's only her hands.
Actually common on this cars for the clutch to get worn down and have the gap be too big. I adjusted mine last year and its working great. If doing it yourself definitely try the clutch, because if you do the compressor you need to deal with the gas(refrigerant).
I was thinking the same thing. Even though I changed the compressor on my Lexus (see above) but, on an older car the quick and dirty fix could work. and save $.
I’ve watched pretty much every video. That was the absolute best reenactment of a customers description of the complaint.
This happened to me with my forester. I too changed the shim gap and the a/c still would give up after I gave it the berries. Turns out it was the relay that was poked. Works perfectly now
I hadn't thought of the relay.
He verified the clutch was being powered on though, on the load side - so can’t be relay. Also the clutch engages if you poke it with a stick. Maybe you weren’t saying that could’ve been the diag but anyway.
the clutch coil still had power so it's not a relay issue.
@@meabob So did mine
@@meabob - Having power and having _'enough'_ power, are two different things - I didn't see where Eric O' had actually checked the current draw (as he himself, suggested) - the relay contacts (internally or otherwise), may not be reliably pushing enough _"beans"_ to pull in the clutch - the light tells you it's switching on; it doesn't indicate whether it's pulling to spec though. _"poking it with a stick"_ just means it will hold (enough?), once it's engaged - I would think (that's usually where I get into trouble), that if it was a shim issue, it would pull-in but not hold tight enough - check the ohms on the magnet-coil and, check the power draw - if the latter two are within spec, then yeah - _"book'em Danno"_ - time for a new compressor (holds true if the coil ohms are too far off, anyway). It would seem to me, that heat-saturation or, cycle-count causes the eventual failure; is it the electrical side or, is it mechanical binding? For the record, I'm _wing'n-it_ here but, I'm calling clutch has power=relay good - a no! @Ludvig Ericson, too - See @DOON
You are so lucky to live in an area where customers bring in their vehicles with such odd mechanical issues that you can use to make such interesting videos .
@J Hemphill That's for darn sure . He even takes customer cars for test drives for diagnosing problems . Who does that these days ? I'd love to take my vehicles to his shop .
@@dalemihocik4732 yes. He still offers that small town mechanic experience. Glad he can do that. Its not common anymore
having worked on cars since i was 10 years old(45 years), I have always subscribed to the poke it with a stick method. Sometimes I win, sometimes I lose. I also use this method on animals, under rocks, humans, any type of in depth investigation that requires me to go into a void I'm not real happy about entering.
Had that exact problem with a Forester in 2016 at 210,000 miles. Bought long metric screws to make a clutch plate puller. Pulled the plate, removed a shim, put it back and still works fine 5 years and 100,000 miles later. Cost under $3.
The reddish dust around the area of the clutch pulley might be a clue that something have worn out.
It’s the clutch bearing. Can’t get the bearing. I know.
You made the right call . Been doing this too long and bend too many clutches . The puller that can be used most of the times results in having to pull the compressor anyways because of the lack of reasonable access .
This is my exact Subaru Forester, and it is having the exact same issue… Thanks for the froths to let me know I should just replace it 👌
a guy posting above you said there are three threaded holes for a puller to remove and shim the clutch. that said, eric said he would fix the clutch if it came off easily and just needed a shim. so try to remove it first, maybe yours will come off right away and will be a super quick and easy fix like the hondas eric made videos of.
Did this exact reapair on my 2004 Outback. There's three threaded holes on the front face of the clutch... just put screws in them and tighten them slowly and evenly. Clutch pops right off. There's several shims inside the splined shaft. I removed them all. Works great now.
I agree. I did this on my 2004 Forester XT a couple of years ago.
That's good to know.
Smart guy knowing when to holdem and when to foldem. I would be replacing the compressor. Its not worth beating yourself up and as you said breaking something.
Most places wouldn't even bother with the clutch like you did. They would call it DOA right from the get go, then charge several grand to replace it.
no, not several grand-lol.
I dont unstand why the air gap failed and why it cant be adjusted to closer tolerance?
@@327JohnnySS
Because these days there is more money to be made in replacement than there is in repair. And that applies to everything, computers, radios, TVs, washers, dryers, car parts, etc.
I did numerous ac clutches on Subaru’s. The trick is to get the bolt out and soak around it with a penetrant. They rust there. Shock it with a brass hammer or punch and walk it out with 2 mini pry bars gently. After time the clutch wear down. The fix is to remove the pulley and remove the washer behind it then reinstall everything. The washer is used as a spacer for the clutch and to keep an optimal gap but after years of wear on the clutch the gap is a lot bigger causing the clutch to not engage.
I think Eric O was just trying to show off Mrs. O’s new paint job on the nails.
Now it’s tax deductible as a business expense
Earl Scheib all the way, baby.
Yeah, Eric. You've already got the best shop and tools around and now Mrs O. too. Lucky dog!
The lady's hands are exceptionally lovely, and a nice touch too!
Mike
Mrs O knows how to use a hammer like a pro. She slid her her hand to the end of the handle instead of strangling it like my Mrs would have.
mrs O is not a pro .
mrs O is the “Gun”
best mechanic in the shop is always named the “Gun” of the Shop . Mrs O is the Gun
So true.... most females (and some males) hold hammers (or other tools) incorrectly. I was taught from a young age how to fix stuff (diagnosed & fixed my home AC yesterday - start capacitor was faulty 👍 AC working great again)
Yes I wish my other half showed that degree of expertise...
@@JenniferFuchek When you buy a hammer you pay for the whole handle, use it all.
When I get to the point where I cannot stand any more of the bad news on the Internet, I come here to learn and laugh and enjoy myself for a short time. Mr. O, your videos are the best therapy this 75 year old ex-tech could ever want. A big thanks to you and Mrs. O. for the great videos!
I had a 2008 F 250 that the ac clutch kicked out at low rpm. Our local mechanic, who was also a ac specialist pulled a shim and that was it. Worked like new, fee was $25. But he died now we’re screwed.
As I was walking up the stairs
I met a mam who wasn't there
He wasn't there again today
I wish, I wish he'd go away
I’d say he’s screwed too.
Mrs O is one classy lady helping you in the shop. You are one lucky son of a gun. New AC compressor is the way to go.
07 Forester FSM says clutch gap should be .0118" - .0236"
It's good you actually put forth effort to try and fix the clutch 99% of shops just throw new compressors on willy nilly like and call it good!! Lol great video
Looked like a trail of rust dust being spun out by that compressor. Time for a new one.
Yeah, looks like metal (iron) dust. Something is wearing, rubbing, vibrating too much. Like you said, "time for a new one".
The clutch bearing went....I know.
Without all that rust MAYBE I'd give a shot to fixing it. Probably not, but maybe if I didn't have much else going on. With the rust trail, no way. New compressor and be done with it. Parts are so cheap and time so precious that compressors, alternators, and starters are all basically swap-out items now.
Just don't buy a Chinesium POS from Four Seasons!!!
Wow i learned quite a bit about the ac system operation and knowing its easy to pull the clutch face off makes me more confident in being able to service compressors. TY for all that you do
For a second when Mrs. O’s hand enters the screen, I thought she had gotten a SMA tattoo on her wrist. It looked cool.
honestly said the same thing.
weren't those arms his and not hers? careful, you don't want to offend the lady! :-)
Mrs. O hammerin' and Eric telling her to pull out. Interesting relationship you have there.
Nice to see more videos coming out, been missing my SMA fix then the last week we've been blessed with several video. Keep up the great work!
Back in the day I,we also used to replace a/c clutches... Feeler gauge...A couple of shims... Bada Bing !!! We'd even rebuild brake calipers in house, 15 minutes, ourselves !!! I stocked kits !!! Hone the bore, new piston seal, Dust boot, pin boots, etc... Rebuilding short blocks... etc... Definitely NOT quite like that as much anymore... These days, part doesn't work... Just put a new EVERYTHING !!! But, yet another good, complete explanation Eric O.... 😀
I miss those days when a gas/service station would rebuild calipers, alternators, engines, etc. Now, they don't even have bays anymore. The world is becoming lonely lol
On the 2015 Impreza, at least - I was able to take the clutch face off and adjust the gap exactly as you described/hoped to show. There were multiple shims and I was able to use a caliper to select the right size. Gapped to around 0.015 if memory serves and it has been cooling well since last summer. It was presenting the exact same symptoms as this customer's Forester.
Did your clutch make noise?
@@franciscallan2729 yes it would - I would hear the electromagnet try to engage and then fail to do so; it would just keep spinning.
Mrs. O can handle those tools! Good to have the brains of the operation under the hood. Another great "stop while we are ahead" video, I never stop until I break something. I like how you approach your problem-solving Eric.
Eric, makes a nice change to see nail polish under the hood - just saying!!
so you're saying he should paint his nails more often?
Yeah I miss the helper ladies.
@@Lowkey_ID Wellll.....errrrr.....ummmmm....not exactly... :)
@@Lowkey_ID Let his daughters go to town on them. Dad as cosmetology guinea pig.
Eric, just be sure to use a dark polish so as to not show the dirt
Love watching you work, wish there were more techs out there that actually fixed things without just blasting the old parts cannon at problems.
I would try changing the compressor, the clutch, install new belts, new hoses, a new alternator, and four new tires.
don't forget the spare with nitrogen
As usual, you raise the bar. Many shops would make that leap to a new compressor much more quickly, but you took your time and showed definitive testing. You even made the effort to get away with just a clutch shim. I had one of these go bad, and with a lot of effort was able to find parts and repair it. It took me hours of work, with a long delay waiting for parts, and all my labor was free. It was an advantage to avoid dealing with refrigerant, but in the end I made a gamble on a 14 year old compressor. It is still working today.
Your right, when those clutch's don't come off easy they usually far apart from stress and are no good anyway. I would put a new compressor pump on.
Mrs.O shes such a good sport and a helpful and wonderful gal helping you out when you need the extra helping hands awesome.
Just remember if Eric O can do it, we can do it. Hey Eric, can I borrow your tools, your brain and shop? Car lifts are nice. Awesome videos. Keep them coming
Yep, we can do it with his shop. If we have to go out and buy all his tools and garage and garage accoutrements we'd need the winning lottery ticket.
@@LadyAnuB and he wants Patreon money?🤣🤦🏻♂️All the views and subscribers? I think he has plenty of money to make videos 🤦🏻♂️which cost nothing.
Found similar symptoms for a/c system on 05 Chevy uplander. A fair amount of rust dust around body of compressor. The clutch would not move easily on the shaft. The system would run but the clutch could not engage smoothly. Eventually, went to scrap yard and removed a clutch disc from another one and measured it up to be a bit thicker. So I installed it with the shim washer and nut and viola! It worked and engaged very well when called for. It still working from 5 years ago.
Props to Mrs O. My wife would have told me “ my nails” and to go pound sand.
your wife needs lessons in equality and reality
@@lordjaashin Yeah, right
@@Zeus-wl2pl Women are like that about a lot of things. SOME WILL AND SOME WON'T !!!!
My wife would most certainly want to help, but I'm not good at asking for the help. I'm more of a try something, get frustrated, and say "I'll figure it out", eventually getting it done an hour (or hours) later through great frustration. Nothing to do with my wife, this is a me problem.
@@terryharvey4811 - That's why I married mine. She does alot of things. Oops ... I may have phrased that incorrectly ... 😃
my clutch on my 95 transport was going bad an with 180,000 miles on it i just told my guy to put a new compressor on it..rust was eating the clutch up thanks to road salt ..works great now,,,best to change both at this point an its age,,,with its 3800 got lots of life left in her..
I have definitely run into this on a few vehicles over the past 10 years. What I have had luck with is simply bending the springs to hold the clutch just a little closer to the rotor. That's all it really needs. Now is that a guaranteed fix? No. But it's cheap and easy, and you really don't have anything to lose. In my experience, you will find out pretty quickly if the adjustment didn't "take" and once you get it tweaked enough, it will last year and years with no issues.
As DIYers we have nothing to lose, but in a commercial shop the rules are a bit different. Callbacks are bad news.
love your channel and watch you all the time, your sense of humor is spot on. Keep up the great work and just ignore all of the wannabe mechanics.
Im pretty sure magnetism is measured in ugga Dugga’s.
My 2014 Jetta TDI used to do this. After a couple (2) hours you would slowly be sweating, and swearing. Never could figure out why. This is fantastic info.
One of those videos where you expect to see some 'bonus footage' at the end where the clutch and/or compressor gets replaced.
Eric, you have a great and beautiful mom, office manager, and assistant. Way to go Mrs. O!!
A Typical Air Gap would be .015". The .035", IMHO is excessive.
Did a focus 03 pulley was about to break off center section of friction plate , bearings on compressor ok no leaks ,put on new plate/ pulley with clutch air gap .18 on 3 points new relay work out like new 114' in Vegas new fan reversed poles spinning reversed pushing instead of pulling,🤔
Max gap on most .25 minimum .12 ,.18 recommended factory spec.
I'm glad that I put a new a/c compressor on my truck last year. It's good to go, the clutch should have plenty of magnetic "umtha" left !! Lol, we just got to love the jokes and sound effects that Eric makes !! Keep it up brother Eric 💪
I remember saving $200 just by shimming a the bands of the clutch on an old Volvo. Never had an issue again. Best thing about not being a pro mechanic.
Yeah, things like that can work. Only a DIYer would try that.
"shimming a the bands"? Please share that process. Thank you
Did this on my 04 forester. There are 3 puller screw holes to remove the clutch. It took a lot of convincing and was stuck on there surprisingly tight. Got about 75,000 more miles out of the compressor before the bearing went bad. Pretty good tradeoff if you ask me.
did your clutch amke noise before the fix and did you take the High and low pressures on the system after the fix I have the same car.
My 03 outback had the same problem. When I fixed it, it had 3 threaded holes to push off the clutch.
Another good video. I was in the trades before I retired, and knowing when to stop can be as important as knowing how to begin. Hey, I have noticed that one of your pet motto's appears to be: "If I can do it, you can do it." If you ever going to sell a T-Shirt with that logo printed nicely over the shirt pocket, I would buy one! I like to support my favorite You-Tube channels.
About time for the AC over hauls again. Surprised the old heads aren’t leaking on this critter.
Subaru issues a new MLS head gasket that resolved basically all the issues these engines had.
My AC works just fine in my 2005... Just saying
@@SquallRinoa89 yeah I have a 2003 that the ac works just as good as new cars
Come on BABY!!! Love your content always learn alot. I am an Industrial Instrumentation Technician at a Large refinery and am always picking up new things from you. Keep up the good work.
I noticed that there is a red dust all over the pulley, on the Compressor and compressor lines. Is that the clutch/disc material from the AC clutch? I'd say that's an indication that something is iffy with the AC clutch.
That's the first thing that came to my head
Dust from a ground bearing due to overtighten belt?
When you talk, EVERYONE listens! Always wise advice. Thanks.
Can't believe that you don't have an air conditioner clutch puller in multiple sizes and flavors.
You have to pull the compressor off to use the tool, not enough room. A lot more time is money.
Brilliant...this might be exactly what's been going wrong with wifey's 2006 Forester. Same intermittent A/C issue. I'll see if it's the clutch. And...if the repair means replacing the entire compressor...Argh. Oh well! I'll have our mechanic verify and make the same fix. Thanks, as always!
Did you ever get around to fixing your wife's ac?? What ended up being the problem?
Eric, you forgot to say, "When I nod my head, you hit it".
One of my sons had a 90 something Volvo whose AC clutch had worn to the point that the air gap was too big, causing the clutch to not stay engaged well. I do not remember how it was constructed but the pulley had three washers in it. When you removed one, that made the airgap smaller!!! So that’s what we did, removed one washer and airgap was now good, and he had a good AC again.
We discovered this fix by doing some Internet search.
Of all the repairs, I like intermittants the most.
The handle of the tool catches less, lol.
Intermittent issues can be a nightmare for those of us who get paid flat rate.
@@meabob Exactly. lol
As a DIYer, I'd definitely keep trying to pull it off 'cause if I screwed it up I'd just end up buying the compressor anyway. As a shop, no way. Good call, as usual. Nice work, and primo shop help. Like others have noted, she knows how to wield a hammer - don't piss her off.
She also knows how to cook, and shoot a rifle. She's not just a pretty pair of nails. :)
Looks likes a repair by "Thing" from the Addams Family.
Almost a Scotty video 🤣😂
It wasn't a repair - it was a TROUBLESHOOTING video.
👍🏻☝️👌🏻🤙
You could also use a piece of folded sandpaper between the clutch face to clean rust and dirt off the clutch surfaces and make it easier for the magnet to suck in.
An MPS Gaussometer would help you measure magnetism in the field (or the paddock !)
At 7:15 Mr. O is trying to finesse the clutch off, he’s feeling some frustration…
… and there’s birds just chirping happily away in the background. Perfect 😎
We run into this kind of problem with electric motors with DC powered brakes in my job. The air gap gets too wide, the coil gets hot and quits pulling.
And the windings overheat and cook the insulation which eventually leads to short circuit 😳
3ph motors i bet?
@@gentlemanzackp6591 Yep.
@@chrisclark5204 I work with 3 ph BOY servos for our robotics at work. its fun
I always learn something from Eric's videos. 👍
IMO That clutch is messed up just by looking at all the rust colored discoloration sprayed around the compressor. Looks like it has been slipping or grinding away its clutch face and throwing the powdered rust around. Wouldn't be surprised if the bearing is going as well..
typical older Subaru in rust belt, I'm not a subaru guy, but I've seen many that way and all of the higher mileage ones that way. including ones with 250K on original compressor. low side port/valve core is most always the #1 leaker on all cars.
Hi from South Africa.... that is a very common problem with the Zexel compressor. The springs in that clutch plate are very stiff. I usually make the clutch gap as small as possible. Made myself a tool to remove those they are a pain to remove without a tool. That clutch is spline and press fit. Use the 3 4mm bolts holes to pull the clutch off, pull a longer 6mm bolt into the shaft to push against
Gotsta know when to hold em,.... And Mrs. O is damn good with a hammer...
Quit giving thumbs down Mr.o is the best
I'd try spraying it with that dry lube for lock cylinders.
Thanks for not double teaming that with Josh.
"It takes a village" - er.... sometimes that's not even enough.
i work for subaru and looking at their service data, there is a spec for air gap. 0.3 - 0.6 mm (0.0118 - 0.0236 in) if exceeded, replace compressor. i dealt with one of these a few weeks back. love the videos
The SMA 498K Big Nasty would have sent that clutch across the street!
Good riddance, says I!
All the way to the post office.
Used to rebuild ac compressors at a company. They have special sockets to pull the clutches. They almost never come off without these. I install the clutches with a press. Good luck prying them off.
I replaced the clutch on my forester when it had the same problem and all the red rust all over the compressor showed it was rusted on the shaft.
forester so you must be from north west. totally not surprised that everything is rusted out
Best noise demonstration.
OK. Mrs. O. is now doing repairs. I have seen her do the "hockey stick", start the engine, switch the light on and off, etc. Now she is wielding a hammer. AND she is the entire office, e.g. orders, invoice payments, scheduling customers, billing customers, paying employees, accounting, dealing with state agencies, etc. The list is long and endless. It is a tremendous partnership. Eric Knows Car Repair, Mrs. O Knows Small Business Management. The finicky details of running a small business are so often overlooked, and are more detailed and arcane than is generally recognized.
You forgot school teacher in the list for Mrs. O. She truly is the brains of the operation!
She has a video all her own of changing a solenoid or wiper motor on the hatchback of her old minivan. That was some years ago now. I forgot what she changed, but she got the service info and did the job start to finish. 👍😎
I think Mrs O has changed her tires too!
...and makes a delicious lunch!
My Subaru had a failing A/C, and I took the problem all the way up to corporate, forcing my local Subi dealer to replace the compressor at no cost to me. At first, they claimed they were unable to reproduce the problem, so were reluctant to change out anything. But the A/C would definitely blow hot air whenever I drove it a while. And the problem happened even after they gave me the new compressor!
Long story short: I tested the A/C relay and found it to be faulty. Swapped it out... bingo! Good to go! Wish Subaru had had the foresight to test such a simple thing themselves.
FYI, it's a 2014 Forester, and the original compressor was "known to have a bulletin" on it that included all the unbolting and gap-spacing stuff you tried, BUT mine for some reason didn't have the screws where the bulleting showed. So it was not user-serviceable.
I replaced the clutch on my 2004 Outback. Yep, I needed a small puller. The new clutch is OEM. I left the part # in my video.
Great video as always. Agreed that you are on the right track, the point of wear, meaning the gap has become too large. I would also check if current draw is changing which could indicate other issues. Also as a note, it is a characteristic of magnetism to change with heat which could be part of the problem the issue is happening after warmup. For example, a magnet at boiling temperature will have lost nearly half its power as compared to its power at freezing temperature. The gap becomes more critical at operating temperature. Love your channel. Keep them coming, please :)