FeedNfrenZ

I noticed something else. It looks like the Acura uses the same compressor but the front (shaft side) of the compressor appears to have a spacer that would need to be removed, turned around and replaced. Plus you would have to use your old clutch............ now! here's my disclaimer. It looks like it would work to me but I don't know for sure.

dr bob

There's no evidence that the Caravan compressor can chill the interior of those boxes. Unless you get dual air in your minivan, the rear passengers still suffer.

For the flagship 928, Porsche recognized that their efforts to have good AC performance in the 911 cars was a dismal failure. Understand also that American-car owners were used to ice-cold AC. With some 50% of the cars destined for the US market, it certainly wouldn't be acceptable to have a basic (to us anyway) system function worse in a 928 than the one in a basic American car that cost 10% of what a 928 was selling for.

So the AC system was purposely made oversized and over-capacity in condenser and evaporator capacity. The compressor is about the same as used in many American luxury cars, with lots of extra capacity. Porsche wisely decided that the single front blower and evaporator would not quickly cool the car after a hot soak, so hot-climate markets received rear evaporators and blowers to shorten the initial cool-down period.

Should we be able to buy compressors cheap? Sure, but... You still end up swapping at least the manifold plates, often swap the clutch and the clutch bearing from your old one to the new one, etc. Realistically, most DIY owner/mechanics are not equipped to pull a clutch without damaging it. A very few have the equipment and knowledge to do more than a belt change.

One also needs to look at how often a compressor needs to be replaced. My poor car is now fifteen years old, yet the original compressor still seems to work OK. Why do compressors need to be replaced? See the previous paragraph. Since these cars seem to sit more than others, the freon leaks out of compressor seals and o-rings that lack proper lubrication. When the system doesn't run regularly, the mechanical seal at the front of the compressor will bleed until the gas level drops. O-rings that dry out will weep gas and oil. What's the remedy? For many of the unknowing, just a can or two of freon and a hose full of air get shoved into the system. The system seems to work again, and it will for a while. At that point either more freon has leaked out, or the compressor self-destructs due to lack of oil. Then it's "woe is me" and we are in the hunt for a cheap replacement.

What to do... Run the AC regularly. Have it serviced by somebody who knows what they are doing. Resist the urge to just do a little short-term fix when performance drops off. Keep the system clean especially the condenser and the evaporator areas, so that heat transfers well out of and into the system. If the system is opened or it "runs down", you MUST replace the drier. That means you'll want to add oil to the drier. Not a bad idea to drop the compressor, drain and replace the oil in there too so you know you have the right amound of oil in the total system. Replace the o-rings at the same time, with extra focus on the ones under the hood where they seem to dry out faster in the heat. Evacuate the system completely. Evacuate the system completely. Keep air from entering the system by purging and evacuating the whole charging manifold and hose setup. Only then should you consider adding freon or R-134a.

Maintain the system and maybe you can avoid buying a compressor, trying to flush shrapnel out of the condesner, or replacing an evaporator that's corroded through due to acid formed from moisture and air left in the system.

With a little luck and a lot of care, the differences between a $150 Caravan compressor and a $400 928 compressor will work out to just a few dollars a year.