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My A/C system has a leak in it and my compressor is making an awful noise: probably needs replacing. Winter is coming though, and I really don't want to spend any time or money on tracking down leaks and converting to 134a and all that jazz. What I want is the simplest way to make the compressor stop spinning when the engine is on. Can I just cut/remove the belt? Could that have negative side effects?

The compressor is on a belt by itself. It's the only reason I would consider removing the belt completely.

Also, are there any significant advantages or disadvantages to removing a non-functioning A/C system entirely?

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vlsd
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5 Answers5

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Unless the compressor is on a belt by itself, you don't want to remove the belt. Water pumps, alternators and power steering are nice things to have. An A/C delete/bypass pulley for your application would be a way to go, but it will involve pulling the compressor. Probably the easiest thing to do is locate the appropriate relay and pull it. If it's the compressor making the noise and not the pulley/clutch, that should work. Otherwise it's pulley time.

If the compressor is on a belt by itself, I guess you could remove the belt. I would still look for the relay and pull it, though. If it was my car, I wouldn't want to drive it long term without putting the delete pulley on. I would be worried the belt off situation was a corner case the engineers didn't worry about.

Keep in mind that whatever leaks you have now are possibly going to multiply if you leave the system unpressurized for an extended period. Also, the compressor is engaged intermittently when you turn on the defroster to dry the air. If your windshield fogs up it will take longer to clear without the compressor.

Mark Johnson
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Cutting the belt will solve your problem as long as the belt doesn't drive any other component. If it's making noise all the time you likely only need to replace the pulley, which may be cost effective. Sometimes it cheaper to replace the the compressor/pulley/clutch combination.

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If there is a seperate fuse or relay for the compressor, then you could remove either. There should be an electrical connector near the compressor that could be unplugged, or you could cut the belt if there is nothing else driven by that belt.

john D.
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Some cars (not Kia) can have a compressor bypass pulley installed & forget the compressor. Pulley & mount about $75 on internet and a couple local mechanic to remove old & install new pulley. 50 MPH air conditioning os just fine.

jabby
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I had a 85 Ford thunderbird with a completely bad ac system. The compressor was on the drive belt so I bought a smaller belt. Completely removed everything which was about a hundred pounds of parts. I got better gas mileage is the only difference I noticed other than more space to work in the engine with out all that crap in the way. Worked great on that car but all cars are different. Most mineke locations offer free a.c. system check and might be able to offer you the best opinion/option

Jason
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