Air condit. compressor?

Question

re: '95 taurus wagon, gl, 3.8......am using air cond. a lot now and want to know if the compressor will 'warn' me before it breaks down or siezes, etc.? what symptoms might i notice before a failure?
jim

Answer 1

In my 20 years there hardly ever any signs, If it is leaking then the a/c won't be as cold. Hardly ever do they make a noisy before they go out. But the clutch on the compressor may rattle before it goes out. On a Taurus 95 percent of the time the front seal well leak causing it not to cool good then completly not cool at all.

Answer 2

If the compressor or other component begins to leak, the air will slowly (or not so slowly, depending on the size of the leak) not be as cold until there is no cooling whatsoever. If the compressor seizes you may get a short period of squeeling but other than that, probably no warning at all. If the clutch on the compressor would sieze, the belt will burn off in very short order and thats where you'll sit, because that belt runs all the accessories.

Answer 3

Usually the compressor will just block, or leak freon.
Compressors makes noise, but noise may last forever, or not. The lower the fan speed is, the less the compressor works. Always run a/c on max, to save fuel, and compressor life.

Answer 4

if you stop having cold air if you start hearing clicking on and off open your hood and find the compressor and watch it right in front of the belt is a clutch. it engages to make the ac work and if it bad it will click in and out those are the most common ways to tell. the clicking means you need more refrigerant added so let a professional do it

Answer 5

You might notice some odd noises from it before it fails. Then again, you might not. I had an old minivan that had an AC compressor that sounded like armageddon but ran fine for over 175,000 miles.

Answer 6

Most of the time, no it will fail and you'll notice that you don't have cold air any more.