TR6

I drove the RSA to work today and on the way home I turned on the Airconditioning to see if it was still cooling since last season. The good news is that, yes, it was cooling great. The bad news is that after a little bit, it stopped cooling. Great. So I drove home thinking I need to take it in for a recharge. Open the deck lid and see that the belt came off the A/C compressor. On closer inspection, the bracket to which the compressor mounts is broken clean in two. Also noticed one bolt is missing, but not sure if that happened before or after the crack. Or if before, did it contribute to or cause the cracked bracket. I can only guess that perhaps a loose bolt caused the compressor to vibrate which caused the bracket to break.

On to my question since I have a DE this weekend. How involved is this bracket to replace? On quick inspection with a flash light, it appears to be pretty substantial. Does anyone have a diagram they can send me that shows the bracket? My brother in law has a bracket on his race car that he offered to me if its not too involved removing it. Worst case, I guess I can just remove the compressor, belt, and hoses and run this weekend without them. But then, that will open up the A/C system to outside air and will result in more expense. Appreciate any suggestions.

Note: the first photo shows the a/c compressor from underneath with the remains of the bracket still attached.

dfinnegan

pics

KirkF

Replacing the bracket sucks because you have to remove the front pulley to do it. I'm not even sure there is room to pull it off with the motor in the car. Some long studs run through it. (See picture)

Kirk

Jasko

Unfortnately, if I remember correctly, you have to remove engine mount to get to it. Which means dropping the motor.


Dave

JW in Texas

Now I remember why I left it on the RSA. Sorry Greg Hello, Todd

viperbob

Holy cow. That is awful. As Kirk posted, there is a fair amount of stuff to remove. Fairly time consuming doing in the car (or out for that matter). Also some special Porsche tools are generally required.

Removing the compressor might open up a couple of issues. First obviosuly you will need to refill the system. You may also then need to replace the drier by leaving the system open. Leaving it just in the engine bay for a DE would be even worse.

Now more good and bad news. The part itself is only list price $259. The bad news is there are 13 available, but they are all in Germany. So it would be a few dollars more and a few days to get one.

Good luck and let me know if I can help or if you have any questions.

TR6

Ok, here's what we're doing. My mechanic has removed the compressor, belt, and some plumbing for this weekend so I can run in the DE. I have a call in to Planet 911 to try to locate a used bracket (if anyone has one, please ping me). I plan to check some other sources this afternoon. If I can't locate a used one, I'll check on a new one. The mechanic said he could probably remove the bracket without dropping the engine but said it would be easier/faster to just drop the engine at least partially. We're also talking about taking the opportunity to do some other stuff like plugs, valve adjustment, minor oil leaks while he's got it dropped (ship wright's disease setting in). My brother in law has a bracket on his RSA race car that he offered me, but I'd have to pay the labor to remove it, which would only make sense if I can't locate a bracket.

The root cause appears to be that part of the mounting points for the compressor had come loose and were missing, bolt fallen out, whatever. That caused strain on the main bracket mounting point as the compressor torqued and vibrated. Eventually it cracked. There's a cautionary tale there. You guys may want to double check yours to make sure all is tight and secure.

No doubt this will be expensive. I guess the only bright side is that I'll be running the DE with slightly less weight due to the missing compressor.

dutchcrunch

you do have to remove the pulley if a/c has not been modified. either way you DO NOT NEED TO DROP THE ENGINE TO REMOVE IT.

dutchcrunch

if the a/c bracket has been modified it will clear the pulley. otherwise you have to remove the pulley and then it will come off. YOU DO NOT NEED TO REMVE ENGINE TO REPLACE THIS .

stevepaa

modified means you cut a portion of the of the bracket to clear the pulley.

springer3

+1 on the comment that the A/C bolts need to be checked. All of mine got lose, and I got a dent in the rear deck lid when the belt jumped off. I guess I am lucky the bracket did not break.

BlackWidow964

dcAuto has one - their web site shows it "in stock" for $100.

http://dcauto.gotdns.com/catalog/ind...13&illo=813-20

Good luck.

TR6

Thanks, that's who I ordered from. Once it arrives, next step is to figure out how to install it...

MA7008O

When I installed the new A/C system on my car, what I did was to support the engine from below and remove the bumper and the rear engine support (some time ago, do not remember what else was involved).

It was not much of a trouble at all.- your figure it out as you go along.

dfinnegan

A bracket is available on eBay