Bmr4life

Ok, things may be worse than I hoped. AC was straight up HOT today, as in hotter than outside.

How can I tell if the compressor is running? When the AC was working, I could never feel the compressor kick in like I could on weaker cars.

Here's a picture. Should the three bolts spin when it kicks in? Mine does not.

90stang5.0

Yes, the clutch will engage and the front of the compressor will spin. There are built in switches that sense low pressure in the system and will not allow it to engage. Sounds like you will now have to start figuring out what is wrong. You can buy gauges and check the high and low pressure, but you will still need a shop manual to know what those pressure should be. Maybe better off to take it to an A/C shop.

Bmr4life

Oh yeah. Its out of my hands now. The pressure is ZERO. I can hear it coming out of the front condenser. Hole is above my finger somewhere.



Who has an idea how much this fix is going to run me?

90stang5.0

According to Rock Auto, anywhere from $88 to $153, depending on which condenser you want to buy and if you want to do the work yourself. Then you have to pull a vacuum on the system and get it charged. If you put your own condenser in, I would think between $100-200 to have the system recharged. But it has been 15+ years since I had any A/C work done. Usually just do it myself.

Bmr4life

Hey, I bought a Motocraft from Amazon for $137.

Ford wants $320 to install and flush. Or $140 if I install and they flush.

I plan on calling around tomorrow to see if I can get it for closer to $250.