First off, hello

I recently purchased a '96 LS Integra, and the AC seems to be acting a little strange. By strange I mean when the engine is idling and the AC is on, I get a distinct shudder/shake about every 10 seconds along with a very fast, brief drop in RPMs. I know what it feels like when the clutch normally engages. This is very different though. It's not the normal, gentle drag on the engine. It's a sudden, bursty thing that almost feels like it's going to make the engine stall. Any clues on what this could be? I suspect the compressor clutch could be dieing, but I really don't know.

Thanks!

 

Welcome to H-T !
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You'll have to post some photos of your new 96 LS.

It sounds as though the compressor may be having an issue, but it's
hard to tell. Have you check the A/C belt itself?

 

Heh, it's nothing special. Just a stock, dk green, LS. It runs great though especially considering it has over 140,000 miles.

Yeah, the belt is fine. It's relatively new with prob. ~1/2 - 3/4" deflection. It's not slipping or anything, so I'm pretty sure that's not the problem.

 

Nobody else has had anything like this happen?

 

Haven't had it happen, but it sounds like your compressor has a lot more drag than it should. Compressor bearings starting to go bad? Maybe it's overcharged with refrigerant?

 

I have the same problem with my ac too but i have a ls swap in a ek h/b. I would like to know the problem too?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by JimBlake &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Haven't had it happen, but it sounds like your compressor has a lot more drag than it should. Compressor bearings starting to go bad? Maybe it's overcharged with refrigerant?
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I'm thinking it's either the bearings or the clutch slipping (and then re-grabbing). I don't think it could be overcharged, because it only started acting up after 3-4 months of ownership, and I certainly haven't put any refrigerant in it. Could undercharging cause something like this?

 

If the compressor runs out of oil & seizes, that'll do it.

With it running, watch the compressor. The clutch is external, so you can see if it's engaging & disengaging. Ten seconds is too fast for normal cycling, so that's why I guessed overcharging. If the compressor drag changes wildly every 10 seconds while the clutch stays engaged, then you've got compressor problems.

There's some AC guys here somewhere, maybe they'll post something.

 

If anyone is interested, I did finally figure out what was going on. It turned out I just had a plain old idle miss that I could only feel with the drag of the AC. I replaced my plug wires, and now it's gone. I guess 142,000 miles is a bit much to ask of the original wires.

 

my integra does this also but i have new wires, plugs, distributer and everything in between. I am thinking it may be cause i have a bigger pulley on my altinater (sp) but not sure. any help

 

Also couldn't hurt to clean your IAC valve. This adjusts / controls your idle. If it's stuck it might not be able to bump up the idle when the A/C comes on.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by 1INTEGRA &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">my integra does this also but i have new wires, plugs, distributer and everything in between. I am thinking it may be cause i have a bigger pulley on my altinater (sp) but not sure. any help</TD></TR></TABLE>

Well really a lot of things can cause an idle miss. I was just lucky that mine turned out to just be wires. You could have a clogged injector, a vacuum leak, etc. Keep trying to eliminate things 1 by 1. That's what I did.