1970s V8 - new AC compressor and clutch?

I had recently to source a new York compressor for my Indy (the current one was shot, apparently a rare ovalisation of the cylinders).
I looked for used ones on internet, not many of them to say the least.
In Europe, you may find some used units e.g. here: https://www.ebay-kleinanzeigen.de/s-autoteile-reifen/york-kompressor/k0c223

Then I found out that there seems to be refabrications of that York unit. Here is one that I found on ebay:
https://www.ebay.de/itm/144303117568?hash=item219922d500:g:nVkAAOSw1QdhnO2K
And here a vendor in France (there seems to be many vendors of such new units): https://radiatech.fr/produit/compresseur-york-er210r-type-209-210-sortie-rotalock/
But upon attempting to order one to that last vendor, it turned out that availability was not guaranteed! So not clear if such units are fabricated in China or elsewhere...

In the end my mechanic succeeded in sourcing a used unit that was refurbished and that is currently being installed on my car. Waiting for the result...

 

The Maserati Club of California was marketing a modern compressor a couple of years ago. They have a website, might be worth getting in contact with them.

 

These updated AC compressor units were offered to me in Europe. Here is a quote the company mailed to me approx 3 years ago:
"The units are assembled in California, USA, they are high quality products, they come with Valeo pump, the price is around $ 800.00 for Merak, Ghibli and Indy."

 

Which units do you refer to?
Are these York look-alike units or Valeo units, could you provide a link?

 

https://www.maseratisd.com/collections/event-registration/products/13750-valero-ac-compressor-for-merak

note: they had marketed this about 2 years ago as being suitable for a wider variety of V8 cars, though they only mention the Merak in the link. Worth getting in touch to see what the deal is.

 

Thank you James, that was the unit/source which was offered to me.

 

Good to hear Art!!

Mike

 

Would like to get your feedback after you have it all running. I had the compressor on my Ghibli rebuilt but I am not happy with the results. Too much vibrations and not enough cooling.

Ivan

 

Interested to know also.
Do you know if your compressor is a new refabrication or a rebuilt one?

I had just a rebuilt one installed by my mechanic on my Indy.
In the (cold) workshop, it produced cool air:

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To Ivan: On the road however, I did not have the feeling it was that cold.
There are no vibrations however, to the point that I could not even notice when it was starting...
I will have to check if it continues working well.

 

It is possible that the vibration is from the AC clutch. I had the compressor rebuilt but not the clutch. I have a couple of extra clutches and will first try another clutch to see if that improves things.

Ivan

 

Thank you Art.
Looks certainly as a remanufactured compressor based on the original York design, I have seen a number of them sold online.
Should work well, as sold by MIE (and fitted well also with clutch and pulley), you'll tell us if your car becomes a fridge!

 

I know a few 456/550/575M guys send their AC compressor to "Polar Bear" in Florida to be reconditioned and rebuild. You might call them and check if they can fix your old one. 949 dollar sound a bit expencive dor an AC compressor when the reason it is expencive is that the bracet is custom CNC machined. You probably have your bracket already?

 

Those cars use that ancient York compressor? That doesn't sound right. Frankly I'd be very tempted to try the Southern California TMC offering. Not it won't look original but it should perform much better and smoother than that very old York compressor.

It's been over 20 years since I tackled this on my Bora. Frankly I never had any long term luck with that AC system. The compressor had the AN style connectors and with the way that engine and transaxel hopped around those fittings were always coming loose. Perhaps a rotolock style would be much better? Newer more flexible AC hoses might help as well. That's a lot of stress on those hoses/fittings.
I had similar problems with the LHM pump hose and went through two NOS hoses before switching to better engineered SS braided hose with a differently oriented fitting and a flexibility loop included.

 

Thank you for the interesting feedback.
So, a nice copy of the original York compressor but not completely exact...
As you corrected it, are the grooves and belts exactly in the same plane as OEM?

 

This stuff is always fun and full of surprises isn't it.

These style of belts are very prone to alignment mismatches causing a rattling, snapping sound. There have been people who did a quick sale of their Maserati thinking something awful was wrong with the engine. The belt climbs up once side of the pulley and then snaps back because the belts are so stiff.

 

Art

Since your compressor/clutch setup seems to have slightly different dimensions to the original, pay much attention to the alignment of the cable to the water pump. It is imperative that the clutch center be aligned with the water pump center. Also the cable should be horizontally aligned with the arm of the water pump. On my Ghibli there is a spacer between the cable and the clutch, this takes care of the horizontal alignment. The horizontal alignment should not be difficult since you can visually make sure the cable is straight. Not sure how to verify that the two centers are aligned (concentric). Failure to do this will mean that the cable will wiggle on every rotation. We all know what happens to a paper clip if it is bent too many times .....

Ivan

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I look at that photo and see a couple of painful things needing attention. Does anyone know who is responsible for this design?