Just replaced the belt on my 03 x-type(3.0). I checked all the pulleys and found the a/c pulley was loose. Replaced the belt and the a/c rattles until I turn the a/c on and the clutch grabs the pulley and the noise goes away. Any suggestions on how to proceed with fixing my rattle issue?

BTW - my 16 year old daughter drives the car and put a princess tiara on display in the front windshield. Could this be part of my problem?


Thanks in advance.

 

ok, so hopefully you haven't screwed up the compressor clutch like I did, but that sound that you hear is because your compressor clutch isn't tight enough so when it's not engaged it rattles around. What WILL happen though is that if it's not tightened, it will burn out the compressor clutch and then you will have to replace the compressor. All you need to do it to tighten that nut on the end of the clutch to about 10ft/lbs

 

Thanks for the advise disguay. The clutch spins freely, so is there a trick to holding it fast while I tighten the bolt?

 

I'm curious how your getting to the clutch nut...You have to remove the right side wheel and wheel well liner to get to the front of the clutch...You can wedge a screwdriver to the clutch while you are tightening the nut.

 

DPK - there is a frame bracket that sits in front of the clutch nut that I able to stick a flathead screwdriver through to act as a brace. Then I pinned the head of the screwdriver against one of the rivets on the clutch plate to keep it from spinning as I removed/replaced the nut.

 

Good job..did that take care of the rattle?

 

The clutch was toast, so I bought a 4 Seasons compressor(2 year warranty) on Amazon and had my mechanic install it. Would have done it myself, but couldn't complete the drain and refill process without help. Total cost $520.