Heater core bypass found in newly bought ranger

[Camjacobsen]

Hey there,
New owner of a Ford ranger here. Been doing a little maintenance and touching some things up. My 2002 ranger has 93k on the dash and is sitting in pretty good condition. Although the ac does not work. While digging around for the suspected problem I ran across a cut grey vacuum line. I believe that this line ran to the heater control valve. I’ve read this is common to delete the heater in case of leaky heater cores (I live in a year round warm climate so it won’t bother me). I’m wondering if this cut vacuum line could be contributing to my ac being shot. I just don’t want to spend the money on replacing the compressor and have it still not work. Any advice would be great…Thanks!

 

[Blmpkn]

I'm not positive on the valve, BUT if your compressor is shot.. you probably need to replace the whole system to have AC back and working for more than a week.

A compressor should be a maintenance item after 8 years or so, cause if a compressor gives up the ghost it more or less takes the rest of the system with it.

 

[19Walt93]

I wouldn't replace a compressor as maintenance. A qualified shop should be able to flush most of the components if a compressor fails, the accumulator and orifice tube most likely will need to be replaced. Just blowing freon into a leaking system often causes problems, the system should be evacuated and the charge should include oil. Those charge-it-yourself kits blow air into the system because the hose is full of it and seldom have compressor oil in them. I don't think I've ever seen a leaky Ranger heater core but I've seen many leaky shut off valves dripping coolant at the right rear of the engine compartment. Step one is to find out where that vacuum hose goes, if the blend door isn't moving you may not get cooling or heat.

 

[Blmpkn]

I suppose it's not a TRUE maintenance item... but treating it as it is will save time and money down the road. I know I'd rather replace mine a little early than have to pay for extra replacement parts and labor for someone to clean the rest.

 

[fastpakr]

I'm sorry, that makes no sense to me whatsoever. If the compressor has a problem, then sure - replace it as needed. But it's definitely not a maintenance item to replace ahead of time.

 

[RonD]

No, the Grey vacuum Line is not why AC is not working, and yes it goes to the heater by-passes vacuum valve, its not cut, the hard plastic lines just get brittle and break like that
You can use rubber hose to splice it back together

The heater by-pass valve is only used in MAX AC setting to stop hot coolant from flowing thru the heater core in the cab, this can reduce temp in cab by a few degrees, ain't much but ain't nothing either, lol

MAX AC setting also closes the Outside Vent, so cab air is recirculated, this is the main benefit of MAX AC since you are re-cooling already cooled air vs trying to cool 90+deg air from the outside
MAX AC is also good to use off-road because it won't pull in DUST via outside vent

AC doesn't have a high or low setting, just on or off, so regular AC cools outside air coming in, MAX AC cools recirculated air


As for AC being shot, 99% of the time its because there was a leak in the system and pressure is now too low for the compressor to activate safely
Most AC fluid has a dye in it that will show up at a leak point, but not all
The condenser, in front of radiator, is the most common leak point

An AC service tech can test if your system can hold pressure and if not, what is leaking, and give you a list of parts that need to be replaced, you can do that labor and then bring it back to be flushed, filled and checked
This is by far the least expensive option as you can waste alot of time and money on fluid and un-needed parts
And you can ruin new parts if installed in an unflushed system

 

[Blmpkn]

I'm sorry, that makes no sense to me whatsoever. If the compressor has a problem, then sure - replace it as needed. But it's definitely not a maintenance item to replace ahead of time.

As I said.... yeah.... it's not a true maintenance item like fluids or brakepads BUT.. replacing it when it getting near its life expectancy can & will save money.

Id rather change mine a little early, than wait for a failure and then need to replace more than one component and pay for more labor than necessary.

You do you, I do me, world goes round.. its a beautiful thing.

 

[fastpakr]

But what arbitrary definition do you use for its life expectancy?

 

[Blmpkn]

The general consensus seems to be that you can expect an automotive compressor to last anywhere from 8-12 years. My personal experience over a few vehicles backs this up.

 

[fastpakr]

Fascinating. I've literally never replaced one except in the donor gear from the '99 that went into my Ranger. Not saying they don't die, but I can't wrap my head around replacing one on a schedule at all.

 

[Blmpkn]

My mothers old 95 blazer stopped blowing cold awhile before my father passed away in the beginning of '07. I remember being "excited" when she ditched the blazer and started driving his truck because the AC worked lol.

The '05 outback wagon I had stopped blowing cold sometime around '14 or '15. Shop quoted me close to 1200$ to properly fix it.

My fiances focus just turned 13 and stopped blowing cold.

My buddy has a 07-08ish taco that doesn't blow cold anymore.

So idk man mabey you're lucky.. mabey myself and the people I know are unlucky.. either way.. ill be replacing my compressors before they take a dump from now on.

 

[fastpakr]

Wait...

You're going from 'stopped blowing cold' straight to 'the compressor died'?

 

[Blmpkn]

Considering they stopped blowing cold so close to what HVAC nerds claim their life expectancy to be... its not that far of a stretch. I do not have "autopsy" proof though, so yeah, slight speculation still.

 

[snoranger]

The general consensus seems to be that you can expect an automotive compressor to last anywhere from 8-12 years. My personal experience over a few vehicles backs this up.

The A/C compressor is still a working original in my:
02 Ranger
94 Mustang
79 F350... still R12.

Care to update those numbers a little.

 

[19Walt93]

I don't think my shop replaced 4 or 5 compressors a year and I had 8 to 11 busy techs. Most failures were leaky orings or condensers with damage from road debris.