A/C Pulley Bad Bearing - F-Body Road Racing and Autocross Forums

have a bad bearing in the A/C pulley. The system works fine but has a wine that sounds like a blower or a gear drive cam.

The clutch is not dragging and the sound is roughly halfed when I turn on the A/C and at its worst when it is off. My thought is the bearing in the pulley spins all of the time and with the clutch pulled in it side loads the bearing to quite it down some. I can hear the noise when turning the pulley by hand.

I have looked up the procedure in the GM shop manual. The clutch plate has to be pulled with a special tool. Then another tool is used to lock into the center of the pulley and pull the pulley off of the compressor shaft.

They list another set of tools to install the bearing and stake it in place and finally another tool to reinstall the pulley on the compressor.

They say that this can be done on the car without opening the A/C system.

Prices for the parts:

Bearing: $20.00

Tools: Not sure

Compressor with shippping: (New GM) $350

Receiver Dryer: (New GM) $50

New Clutch Pulley assembly: $110

My questions:

1) Has anyone done this job, are the special tools needed and where do you get them?

2). Is a functional 90K miles A/C compressor ready to be replaced anyway?

3). What do you think would be the most cost effective way to proceed?

Thanks

Z28

z28barnett View Member Profile	Nov 18 2004, 04:56 PM Post #1
Advanced Member Group: Advanced Members Posts: 360 Joined: 24-September 04 From: Missouri Member No.: 468	have a bad bearing in the A/C pulley. The system works fine but has a wine that sounds like a blower or a gear drive cam. The clutch is not dragging and the sound is roughly halfed when I turn on the A/C and at its worst when it is off. My thought is the bearing in the pulley spins all of the time and with the clutch pulled in it side loads the bearing to quite it down some. I can hear the noise when turning the pulley by hand. I have looked up the procedure in the GM shop manual. The clutch plate has to be pulled with a special tool. Then another tool is used to lock into the center of the pulley and pull the pulley off of the compressor shaft. They list another set of tools to install the bearing and stake it in place and finally another tool to reinstall the pulley on the compressor. They say that this can be done on the car without opening the A/C system. Prices for the parts: Bearing: $20.00 Tools: Not sure Compressor with shippping: (New GM) $350 Receiver Dryer: (New GM) $50 New Clutch Pulley assembly: $110 My questions: 1) Has anyone done this job, are the special tools needed and where do you get them? 2). Is a functional 90K miles A/C compressor ready to be replaced anyway? 3). What do you think would be the most cost effective way to proceed? Thanks Z28

z28barnett View Member Profile	Nov 30 2004, 03:14 AM Post #2
Advanced Member Group: Advanced Members Posts: 360 Joined: 24-September 04 From: Missouri Member No.: 468	I bought a A/C clutch puller / installer off of Ebay. I am not sure it will work. I think it does have the right thread for the compressor shaft but the large nut that screws into the clutch plate may not be right. The compressor shaft is supposed to be 9mm. I have an adapter that is close to that. The large remove/install nut is both coarse and fine thread. Its outside diameter is coarse .9375-23.82mm, Fine 23.92mm-.9415. It is a Big "A" Tool P/N: 17-9870. $5.99 on ebay with $5.95 shipping. It says it is for GM A/C clutches. If it wasn't cold, dark, wet, and muddy outside. I would crawl under the car and check it out. So far I am afraid it is too large for the clutch hub because the Shop manual says it is 22MM. But I have seen errors in the manuals. I bought the tool as a gamble since it was pretty cheap and had a good chance of working. Has anyone worked with this type of tool and know the inside thread on the clutch hub? Thanks Z28