So here is the deal. I have a 96 Civic EX with 130k on it. We bought it with the A/C working but there is a ghetto rigged switch on the bezel to turn the compressor on. not sure why. Anyway a couple days ago a stupid friend of ours was flipping the switch on and off while my girlfriend was driving. Next day I drive it and there's no A/C. So I pop the hood and quickly see that an electrical connector going to the top of the compressor is off and melted. My guess is the switch got overloaded. Anyway after having some friends look at it we determined it is the pressure sensor. Feel free to scroll down and look at the pics as you may be lost by now. anyway I went to purge the frion from the system and nothing came out. So my guess is that it came out through the hole in the brass fitting in the compressor(see pic). My question is where do i get a replacement? Or do I have to replace the whole compressor? The main issue that I've run into is that mine does not look anything like the rest of the 96-00 civic pressure sensors. So if I do find one I am not sure if it will even fit. I suppose it is possible that the compressor is from another vehicle? is this possible? I dont know a whole lot about a/c systems. I can replace it if necessary but I dont even know if that will fix it at this point. What would you do?

 

85 views and no one knows anything? bump!

 

Pressure sensors on a 96-00 civic sits on the receiver drier. That looks like the wire that controls the clutch.

PROTECTOR SET, THERMAL 38908-P2R-A01

 

yeah that is the part i came up with too but it doesnt look anything like mine. so whats the deal? im going to go look at the compressor right now and see if i can find a part number on it to make sure its the right compressor.

 

The A/C thermal switch is not needed, it can be bypassed but not removed on some compressors as it "opens" compressor allowing refrigerant to leak out, resulting in no A/C.

The circuit is, 12V+ output from the compressor clutch relay, through the A/C themal switch, to the clutch coil.

Bypassing the A/C thermal switch and going directly to the clutch coil only prevents shutdown if compressor overheats.

Most compressors do not have the thermal switch.

The first thing I would do is jump the clutch relay.

If compressor "turns on" it is a good bet you have a low charge, leaked out.

If compressor still will not engage, there is a connection problem or no power, check for power at the relay, check for connection problem to the compressor.

Output lead from the A/C cutch relay is red.

Your compressor is a Sanden/Sankyo TRS090, and by the pix it is what you have, with thermos switch removed.

I am not sure why the switch was installed, unless there is another problem it was not needed. 94

 

^you sir are a genius. I will look more into this when my girlfriend gets home with the car. thank you!

 

ok so i have concluded that this compressor is definitely not the oem compressor. it is the trs090 because when i put it in google images it shows the compressor with the blue plastic piece. http://www.google.com/imgres?um=1&sa...&tx=130&ty=102
however it looks to be on the wrong side. I bought a new compressor kit with the oem compressor, dryer, fluid etc. for $100. I am willing to just change the whole thing out because i cannot find the right electrical connection. I could use the one from the new compressor but the old compressor does not have the mounting/ground tab for the metal piece that holds in the magnet. There is also two wires coming from the old 'thermal protector' and only one on the new compressor which is the one with the grey connector on it. will this matter? I dont want to go through the trouble of installing it and then it doesnt work. however the wire goes into the compressor clutch and the new one has the same thing except it has two wires that go into the clutch. i am so confused. what should i do??

 

bump?

 

It is not the correct compressor, or I should say, the pulley is wrong, your Civic uses a 4grove belt, I count 5-6 on that one.

The only things that are important with compressors are the pulley, [must match the belt] the mounting, both the one in the Civic and the one you post are "tangent" mounts, [spacing/offset of the mounts is the diff.] the manifold, [A/C lines connection] both are "pad" mounts, and last but not least the distance from the front mount to the first pulley grove mid-point.

The compressor you got is for another application, [another car] compressors can be the same but changing the clutch assembly allows of other applications.

However the one you post is a Made In China knock-off, it is not a Sanden/Sankyo.

Question, is the one you got, "I bought a new compressor kit with the oem compressor] the one you posted a pix of? 94

 

you scared the **** out of me for a second. I thought you meant the one on the car right now didnt have the right amount of grooves. But no, the one I posted the link of is not the one I bought. The one I bought has 4 grooves. I went ahead and bought it because I could not find the part that goes into the old compressor. I thought maybe I could use the one from the new compressor but it will not work because the old compressor does not have the mounting tab for the clip that keeps the magnet(or whatever it is) in.

 

OIC. 94

 

what does that mean?

 

Oh I see. 94

 

oh. duh. haha. anyway i replaced the compressor. now i have more problems. if you'd like to take a look: https://honda-tech.com/forums/honda-civic-del-sol-1992-2000-1/c-wiring-question-s-3171316/

 

I just wanted to say though.

 

link doesnt work

 

OK, the toggle switch needs to go.

You are going to have to pull the heater, A/C controls, that is that whole trim piece the controls and radio are in.

On the harness plugged into the HVAC control, find the blue/red lead and test it for a ground when the stock A/C switch is on, [blower switch must be on one of the four speeds].

If it shows a ground when on the blue/red find the A/C thermostat, [behind glove box].

It has a 3 wire plug...
Blue/red, from A/C switch, it must also show a ground when A/C switch is on.
Black/yellow 12V+ when ign. switch is on.
Blue/white, also a ground when A/C switch is on.

It sounds like the PO cut the blue/white from the A/C thermostat and connected it to the rocker switch to bypass a possibly defective A/C thermostat, the A/C thermostat is needed to "cycle" the compressor to prevent the evaporator from freezing up, if it is defective, [no ground on the blue/white when A/C switch is on] you will need to replace it.

Let me know what you find. 94

 

thank you so much!
is the thermostat part of the bezel?
like i said in the other thread i need to get cold air first before i start messing with it. any idea what could be wrong? like i said, the condensor fan is on and the compressor is spinning. only other clue is that something is making a noise when the compressor is turned on.

 

Without a set of A/C gauges it will be hard to diagnose .

Was the correct amount of oil used, [5oz pag 46 or Ester oil]?
Was the correct amount of refrigerant used, [23oz R134a]?
Was the system evacuated, [on vacuum pump] for at least 45min.?

When compressor is running is the suction line, [thicker of the two] cold. is the discharge line, [thinner of the two] hot?

The A/C thermostat is mounted to the evaporator housing, it has a capitalor, [sp.] running from it into the evap. housing.

It is very important that the A/C thermostat is working properly for A/C to work. 94