A/C Compressor noise

[Mags]

Hi all, I had a panic moment Monday night when I started to hear horrible metallic noises and a bit of smoke from the bonnet, it turned out to be coming from the A/C compressor. I turned off the A/C and carried on as normal without issues.
I tried turning it back on as I got home and it wasn't noisy. From a bit of googling it sounds like it's either totally knackered which might only show up again when it gets hot or it could be the clutch. The clutches look very simple and is more likely to make noise as soon as it engages as opposed to when hot so I'm expecting it to be knackered, just wanted to know if others had experienced this as they are expensive units to replace plus the re-gas cost too.

Thaks
Mark

[nawarne]

Hi Mark,
Last year when my Tuscan went in for service I requested an air-con re-gas as I could no longer hear the compressor "clutch in". Upshot was that when the system was tested for leaks, the gas tester went off-scale near the compressor.

At the time I couldn't buy new,,,,and second hand ones were hard to get hold of. Eventually, found this company in Ringwood, Hants: A.C.R UK Solutions (tel: [phone]), who for a quoted price of £280 offered to do a full service of the compressor.

The machine came back looking like new, with bearings/seals/clutch replaced, and couriered to my home. Fairly easy job to refit and Jon re-gassed it at the next service. Couldn't fault the service. Maybe worth a 'phone call?

Nick

[Mags]

nawarne said:

Hi Mark,
Last year when my Tuscan went in for service I requested an air-con re-gas as I could no longer hear the compressor "clutch in". Upshot was that when the system was tested for leaks, the gas tester went off-scale near the compressor.

At the time I couldn't buy new,,,,and second hand ones were hard to get hold of. Eventually, found this company in Ringwood, Hants: A.C.R UK Solutions (tel: [phone]), who for a quoted price of £280 offered to do a full service of the compressor.

The machine came back looking like new, with bearings/seals/clutch replaced, and couriered to my home. Fairly easy job to refit and Jon re-gassed it at the next service. Couldn't fault the service. Maybe worth a 'phone call?

Nick

That's great, thanks, much cheaper than a new one which is ~£450 before the regas. Will give them a call.

[Mags]

I spoke to them, they offer a collection/refurb/return process which is cheaper than a replacement, good news, thanks for the tip.
The bad news is if the compressor has failed I have to look replacing the filter drier and have the system flushed etc so I need to find out the cost of getting this done and where the drier lives. My first thought is it's bound to be hidden behind an inaccessible panel knowing TVR.

Mark

[nawarne]

Mags said:

I spoke to them, they offer a collection/refurb/return process which is cheaper than a replacement, good news, thanks for the tip.
The bad news is if the compressor has failed I have to look replacing the filter drier and have the system flushed etc so I need to find out the cost of getting this done and where the drier lives. My first thought is it's bound to be hidden behind an inaccessible panel knowing TVR.

Mark

On the Tuscan the drier is in the headlight void between the inner and outer wings.
Of course, it could be completely different on a Griffith! The trinary switch is in there too.
Nick

[olivierfr]

Hello @nawarne and @mags,
could you tell me if your air conditioning units are original or adaptable? I have plans to install air conditioning on my chimaera and am looking for information. Are you satisfied with the cooling over 30°C, and what is your configuration? Thank you very much for your help.

[nawarne]

olivierfr said:

Hello @nawarne and @mags,
could you tell me if your air conditioning units are original or adaptable? I have plans to install air conditioning on my chimaera and am looking for information. Are you satisfied with the cooling over 30°C, and what is your configuration? Thank you very much for your help.

Olivier, the aircon is as per factory fitment.

With the recent service, the cabin temperature is acceptable. The air from the vents is noticeably chilled.
I had a Chimaera with factory fitted a/c and after a proper re-gas, it was really cool in the cabin.

Nick

[olivierfr]

Thanks Nick for this information!
I m looking into equipping my Chim, do you have any specific advice for installing air conditioning?

[ashenfie]

One think is to avoid damp or humidity from getting into the system. It really bad for ac.

[olivierfr]

You mean in the chimaera’s air ducts? To prevent the bacteria from proliferating, is that okay?

[Mags]

olivierfr said:

Hello @nawarne and @mags,
could you tell me if your air conditioning units are original or adaptable? I have plans to install air conditioning on my chimaera and am looking for information. Are you satisfied with the cooling over 30°C, and what is your configuration? Thank you very much for your help.

Hi, As Nick said it's factory fitment (mine is a 2001 Griff SE) and uses a Sanden TRS105 compressor.
I would say the cooling is OK, I might be wrong, and I'm not sure if the Griff SE's blower/heater installation is any different to other Griffs/Chimaera's but I think the general heat soak doesn't help the AC performance. I tend to only use it to help on really hot days to get airflow when not moving at speed or try and counteract the heat soak.