I replaced the a/c pully/clutch in my 98 civic. When reassembling onto the compressor I used the 1 shim from the old set-up. When I drove the car around for a bit there was some noise and the clutch plate got very hot. I noticed the clutch plate sticking a bit even with the a/c off and the electric disconnected. I think the clearance between the clutch and pully is incorrect. I read it is supposed to be .02''. There is play in the pully. Does this .02 clearance refer to when the whole thing is assembled and as is or when I manually pull the pully toward the clutch plate? Meaning even with the play in the pully there should be .02"?? The thing was smoking and the clutch blued a bit. What am I doing wrong? I hope to get my ac working again! Thanks for any and all suggestions/info. I looked through previous posts and could not find anything.

 

you need a feeler gauge and you need to tell us the exact measurements you have when the compressor clutch disengaged.

its possible the clutch could be grabbin because there isnt enough clearance

 

I realize now that when the pully moves around it has to touch the clutch plate otherwise the whole set-up wouldn't work. When the compressor is on end with the clutch plate on top like shown in the repair manual I believe I have about 0.02" clearance between the plate and pulley. I wonder if the belt is too tight? And doesn't allow the pully to be away from the clutch plate when the compressor is not engaged? Or something else is wrong with another component. hmm.

 

The outer plate of the clutch pulley should have about 0.020" of clearance when the compressor is off. Just so I know you know, the outer plate is dogged to the compressor shaft, and should float above (about 0.020") the belt pulley with the compressor off. If someone turns the ac on with the key in the on position (engine not running) the outer plate will be pulled firmly against the belt pulley. You need to check the clearance with a feeler gauge with the engine off, compressor off.

Also, real important, the outer plate should turn with slight resistance by hand when the car is off. If it's very tight, the compressor is locked or on the verge of locking - failing. What was the original problem?

 

Original problem was when I turned on AC the pulley/clutch made alot of noise. I bought a clutch plate w/o trouble shooting too much. When I took the old assembly apart the clutch plate looked DOA and the pulley bearing was loose and the ball bearings could be seen and eventually just fell out. So I seemed to be on the right track. I reassembled with new pulley, plate, field coil etc. Then it started burning after the engine ran for about 20 minutes. When I got home I looked under the hood and with the ac off I noticed the clutch plate kinda moving and trying to turn along with a bad smell. And thank you cheggie for the info! It is the little tips that help.

 

When assembled and put back on the car I noticed that the clearance between the pulley face and clutch plate face is not even all the way around. Did I do something when I put the field coil on and pressed the pulley back on?

 

I assume you recharged your system also? When I did the one on my Si I accidentally over filled the freon and it locked up and started smoking as well. Let some out and all was well.

 

Anyone have any ideas on this? Thanks

 

How loose should the pulley be when the belt is not attached? Anybody in this entire forum have any experience with this??

 

Measure the gap all around the pulley. What are the measurements for widest and smallest gaps?

 

the distance between the pulley and plate is approx .02" and less to where it almost touches the pulley. I don't currently have a belt on it so there is alot of horizontal play in the pulley but the measurments were taken when the belt was in.