ac compressor??

[curt03]

alright guys... my ac turns on when it wants to.. when i turn my ac on sometimes it turns on and sometimes it doesnt. and when it doesnt and i leave it in the on position i can hit a bump and it turns on sometimes. its really annoying. ive posted about this a while ago and people said it was the ac compressor clutch.. before i go and buy a new ac compressor i just want to make sure that this is the problem and its not a switch or something. florida summer is just toooooo hot! any input would help

[Xphobe]

A little more info would be nice. What are your refrigerant pressures when its running, what does your compressor sound like when it first engeges, have you checked the terminal connector with a meter?

[curt03]

idk what the pressures are and idk how to check and as far as what is sounds like when i turn the ac on, its like when you turn your truck off after your ac was running and then you turn your ac off.. it sounds like a release of air kinda.. but no ac.. and idk what terminal your talking about.. sorry for the lack of info.. i dont really know how the ac system works

[Xphobe]

Well, if the A/C is too low on refrigerant it will not turn on due to a pressure switch preventing it to turn on. If the Clutch is worn it will sometimes make a bit of a grinding sound until the clutch fully locks. If it is turning on based on vibration or jerking it might just be a loose/faulty connection.
The easiest way to figure it all out is to pull the electrical connector from your compressor and check the wiring to see if it is getting voltage.

[7PO1NT3]

If you say it turns off and on when you hit bumps on the road then it sounds to me like an electrical issue. Check voltages and connectivity

[curt03]

alright ill try looking at the connections tomorrow and get back to you guys

[Bill Kay]

Sounds like the clearance between the AC clutch plate and the compressor plate is too big. Same thing with mine a year or so back. If you can tap the front clutch plate with a wrench and it engage while the truck is running and AC on high then the clearance is too great. A washer can be removed behind the clutch plate to reduce the clearance and get it within spec. Google this and it will give you a step by step. About a 15 min fix. Betcha this is your problem cuz mine was doing the same thing with the bumps.

[tubular031]

I also had the clutch gap issue on mine

Start here
SpringerPop's Compressor Clutch Air Gap

Also check the pressure on the system. Get a set of gauges or rent them from autozone.

[mrplowjr73]

check/wiggle the harness/plug at the compressor, I had a break in the wire and it did the exact same thing, a ziptie fixed it.

[JSchuricht]

I had a bad connection that did this. Start the truck up and turn the AC on. You should see the compressor spinning, if it's not try moving the wires around and watch to see if the compressor kicks on again.