Ac compressor clutch went out?

BBB129

Veteran Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2014
Location
Scottsdale, AZ
TDI
2005 Passat Wagon BHW 2004 Jetta 5 spd BEW - 99.5 jetta 5 speed - 1982 Mercedes 300D Manual 4 spd
Pretty sure my AC compressor clutch went out on me, heard a squeal yesterday when warming up, ran to the car to turn off AC to try and tell me if it was the culprit, however it stopped before I got to it....TODAY driving I hear the squealing again and then stops and my AC stops working, I smell burnt clutch and after inspection, the clutch seems loose in the compressor and there is debris around there. SO ya clutch is gone obviously, what im concerned about tho, is that when I run the AC the clutch seemingly engages but wont get cold air out of the vents (only tried it for 30 seconds or so).....wondering if my clutch would have taken out my compressor? I don't want to buy and install a new clutch when I need a whole new compressor.....Oh yeah just evacuated and refilled the AC with 600 grams three days ago....
 

johnboy00

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 15, 2000
Location
Bridgewater,Ma.,USA
TDI
2005 Passat Wagon, 2004 Jetta, 2003 Jetta wagon
Assuming the controls are otherwise working (relays, etc) either, 1. its the clutch coil, 2. the clutch itself, or 3. the compressor.

1. The resistance of the clutch coil, from the 2 pin connector should be around 3 ohms or so. If its high then there will not be enough energy to pull in the clutch.

2. If the clutch seems loose then its possible the clutch splines stripped. This happened on my golf, once. http://forums.tdiclub.com/showthread.php?t=391119

3. Also, IIRC, the center of the clutch, connected to the compressor, should turn relatively easily, with the car off. If it doesn't I think you may need a compressor. It's likely that you need to pull the clutch to be sure that compressor will spin since you won't know if the splines are stripped on the clutch.

If the coil is OK, you can replace only the inner part of the clutch.

My money is on #2
 
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DeliveryValve

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 27, 2007
Location
Western US
TDI
Passat GLS Wagon
Why did you evacuated and refilled the A/C? It would seem to me that could be related and you might have experience a compressor failure, not just a clutch failure.

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