Heart transplant in an 355 A/C compressor | FerrariChat
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Heart transplant in an 355 A/C compressor

Discussion in 'Technical Q&A' started by eric355, Feb 3, 2010.

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  1. eric355

    eric355 Formula 3
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    Nov 30, 2005
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    Toulouse (France)
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    Eric DECOUX
    #1 eric355, Feb 3, 2010
    Last edited by a moderator: Sep 7, 2017
    I didn't want to publish before I was sure it is OK. Now it is.
    During my major I checked the compressor and found it not so easy to turn, much more difficult than on others cars. Ouch! The cost of a compressor being not so friendly I decided to try a repair.
    I was convinced it was a faulty bearing but, with the beast open, the culprit appears to be the wobbling plate with the rods and the pistons. In fact some of the ball joints between piston and rods or between rods and plate were very very tight. Too much tight , they were acting against the displacement of the plate, and asking for too much torque to turn the compressor. No way to repair that.
    Hopefully this compressor is of a very common and very widespread type : Sanden SD7H15. It differs from car type to car type, by the position of the ports, the fixation ears and the pulley, but the internal parts are all the same.
    So, I located a used and cheap compressor from a very wide diffusion french car, which was still turning freely. Transplantation of its wobbling plate and pistons in the original compressor is quite straightforward. Only 1 O-ring is required if the head is not opened.

    Now that my A/C system is filled, the compressor can be activated and it works very well ...so far!

    If you are in the same situation and want to save some $$$, it can be a way to go ...
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  2. INTMD8

    INTMD8 F1 Veteran
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    #2 INTMD8, Feb 3, 2010
    Nice work! I had no idea the internals were like that.
     
  3. saw1998

    saw1998 F1 Veteran

    Jun 8, 2008
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    San Antonio, Texas
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    Scott
    #3 saw1998, Feb 3, 2010
    Last edited: Feb 3, 2010
    Nice disassembly. Rotary AC compressors are interesting, aren't they.

    Ricambi now has an improved Sanden compressor (with an internal sight glass), including the electromagnetic clutch assembly for an extremely reasonable price.

    One thing to keep in mind is the very high RPM nature of the F355 motor and whether the Sanden rotary compressor (even with the same model number) for one model is compatible for use with the Ferrari OEM electromagnetic clutch. To my way of thinking, now that the price has been so reduced, it would make sense to replace the entire unit.


    LINK: http://www.ricambiamerica.com/product_info.php?products_id=203599
     
  4. eric355

    eric355 Formula 3
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    #4 eric355, Feb 3, 2010
    Last edited: Feb 3, 2010
    That is a valid point. The rotating parts are still the original ones, and their RPM range is reduced by the pulleys diameters. The wobbling plates, the oscillation frequency of which is RPM dependent, were exactly the same between the 2 models.
    Time will say if the repair is viable or not, but I am quite optimistic. Anyway, I did it for less than $100!!
     
  5. INTMD8

    INTMD8 F1 Veteran
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    #5 INTMD8, Feb 3, 2010
    Does the 355 disengage the compressor after a certain throttle position/rpm?

    Many calibrations for american cars are set up this way.
     
  6. eric355

    eric355 Formula 3
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    #6 eric355, Feb 3, 2010
    I don't think so. The Motronic (at least the 5.2) has 2 wires connected to the A/C system. One is linked to the on/off button, the second one is linked to the command of the compressor clutch. AFAIK they are both INPUT signals which are used for idle regulation, and not to disengage the compressor at higher RPM.
    The A/C ECU has no clue of engine RPM so it cannot do it neither.
     

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