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97 Grand Am compressor ?

craigecooper on Sun June 23, 2013 5:49 PM User is offline

Year: 1997
Make: Pontiac
Model: Grand Am
Engine Size: 2.4
Refrigerant Type: 134a
Ambient Temp: 90
Pressure Low: 100
Pressure High: 100
Country of Origin: United States

clutch engages / compressor may or may not be turning .. assume it is / 100 low ... 100 high so somethings clogged or compressor is not pumping, correct ? I'm hoping I can get by with just a compressor and drier as the TXV is buried under the dash. I've never been into anything more complicated than a leaking compressor so any tips would be most appreciated.

GM Tech on Sun June 23, 2013 6:32 PM User is offline

last one I did like this was meerly a bad control valve in rear of compressor- they are replaceable...

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The number one A/C diagnostic tool there is- is to know how much refrigerant is in the system- this can only be done by recovering and weighing the refrigerant!!
Just a thought.... 65% of A/C failures in my 3200 car diagnostic database (GM vehicles) are due to loss of refrigerant due to a leak......

craigecooper on Sun June 23, 2013 11:14 PM User is offline

interesting.... never even heard of that. So an autoparts store would know what I was talking about it if I asked for one? Are they replaceable in place?... no evac...or recharge ?

craigecooper on Mon June 24, 2013 8:21 AM User is offline

Is there an easy way to test whether the problem is just the control valve or not ?

mk378 on Mon June 24, 2013 10:28 AM User is offline

A V5 that turns but doesn't pump often is the control valve. It fits in the side of the compressor near the back, held in by a snap ring. Sometimes it can be reached while compressor is still mounted on the car, but in any case, the refrigerant must be removed to zero pressure first. Then evacuate and recharge.

craigecooper on Sun June 30, 2013 3:19 PM User is offline

Any idea on where to obtain a new control valve ? auto parts stores around act like they've never heard of it.

craigecooper on Sun June 30, 2013 3:21 PM User is offline

nevermind on that.... i see them in ACKITs part list. But I have no clue which one to order

TRB on Sun June 30, 2013 4:28 PM User is offlineView users profile

Should be marked with a color on the end of the CV.

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craigecooper on Sun June 30, 2013 4:30 PM User is offline

covered with road gunk... i'll vacuum it and pull it out. Hopefully can clean it off without washing off the color

GM Tech on Sun June 30, 2013 5:52 PM User is offline

If it is for a grand am-- it is an N-car which was always a red control valve- I remember that from the compressor assembly line...

-------------------------
The number one A/C diagnostic tool there is- is to know how much refrigerant is in the system- this can only be done by recovering and weighing the refrigerant!!
Just a thought.... 65% of A/C failures in my 3200 car diagnostic database (GM vehicles) are due to loss of refrigerant due to a leak......

craigecooper on Sun June 30, 2013 6:04 PM User is offline

and just now before vacuuming I thought I would double check and verify 100 high / 100 low compressor running before buying a control valve. Not the compressor is not spinning and pressures are 25 / 25. So I'm thinking too low to trip the compressor. I need to verify that and put some dye it in before proceeding but I'm not certain of the cutoff switch jumper. I have a red / black / white wire plug. Do I jump the red / black to get the compressor spinning long enough to suck in some dye ? or just pull a vacuum, see if it will hold a vacuum, and charge from there with some dye ?

mk378 on Sun June 30, 2013 6:19 PM User is offline

25 psi static is a near total leak-out. Find the leak. Cars with a V5 are very prone to leak from the compressor itself-- either the "belly" joints in the center of the case or the shaft seal.

It is not necessary to jump anything to charge a system. Starting from vacuum, engine OFF, put refrigerant in as liquid (preferably into the high side) until it won't take any more. Then start the engine, engage A/C, and finish the charge as gas to the low side.

Edited: Sun June 30, 2013 at 6:22 PM by mk378

craigecooper on Sun June 30, 2013 6:43 PM User is offline

thanks.... i realized before trying anything else that the high side switch isn't really a switch. More complicated than that and not jumpable anyway. This one is definitely leaking from the belly. Didn't know that was even possible. hopefully nothing is trashed internally to the point where it would need flushing.

GM Tech on Sun June 30, 2013 6:48 PM User is offline

It's not trashed- based on the 4 or 5 hundred I have resealed...the 3 wire transducer on high side is not jumpable--if you have to run compressor- jump the a/c relay in underhood fuse center---get some refrigerant in it to test it- control valve failure is about 2% of a/c failures on V-5 loss of charge is about 65% you play the numbers...

-------------------------
The number one A/C diagnostic tool there is- is to know how much refrigerant is in the system- this can only be done by recovering and weighing the refrigerant!!
Just a thought.... 65% of A/C failures in my 3200 car diagnostic database (GM vehicles) are due to loss of refrigerant due to a leak......

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