Hey everybody. I'm replacing the compressor and orifice tube on me Mum's '02 Taurus at 110k miles, so they're all original parts. I've never done this job before so I need advice going in. I believe this car has an orifice tube vs. filter as when I'm on rockauto and drilled down to 2002 Ford Taurus OHV, in the Heat and Air Conditioning sub-menu it only gives an option for orifice tube and not filter, so I guess an orifice tube is what I got.

What little doo dads do I need besides the compressor and orifice tube going into this?...o-ring seals or some kind of general AC component seals replacement kit? Or things other than the seals I'm imagining running into?

Also, any just general advice going about this? Much obliged

 

Do you have the equip to evacuate and recharge the system?
If not, don't open it up until either you get the equipment or can have someone with the necessary equip handle the job.

What was/is the original problem?
Why do you feel the compressor needs to be replaced?
Age does not matter as long as all the parts are doing their job.. When something goes wrong, most times it can be corrected without big big expense and problems.
If the system requires some refrigerant be added and the leak is very small , easier to just add a little refrigerant than to open a can of worms..
Without a leak detector to pin down a very small leak, opening the system can get expensive and create other problems.

 

Hey there hanky. The system has already been evacuated and I can rent a vaccum from a local Oreilly's to do the system recharge.

It's no slip up I didn't mention why the compressor needs replacing. I killed it actually. I was recharging the r134a in the system as it has a small leak and over pressurized the system. Smoke started coming from the compressor pulley area. I evacuated the system again and added the correct amount of r134a and the compressor continued to smoke. I don't know if I just killed the clutch or the whole thing, but I read a while ago that you might as well replace the compressor if you're replacing the clutch as the cost is about the same, so now I'm replacing the whole thing.

Thanks for advice about fixing things. I agree age doesn't matter as long as it's working.

I'll take whatever advice you have.

 

It has been a while., but if you have the room and rent the right tools, you can replace the compressor clutch assy without opening the system.. Can save time , labor and $$.

If you must replace the compressor , don't know if it will come with a clutch assy on it. If not, you will need the pulley installer tool to press the center part of the clutch onto the compressor shaft. It has to be pressed on, will not tolerate banging or roughness..