2010
Cayman
having some pulley noise from the AC clutch (which is just a pulley & bearing mounted to the compressor shaft). I'm having trouble getting the pulley off but I was wondering if I could just install a shorter serpentine belt to bypass it if the bearing seizes before I get it fixed.
So I'm wondering how track-prepped cars deal with removing the AC compressor (for weight saving). Is there so other way to delete the compressor? I google searched and found similar questions regarding other car makes. Nothing on Porsches.
Looking at the belt path, it doesn't appear that it would be possible to bypass the compressor pulley with a shorter belt. There would be very little tension for the belt to drive the P.S pump. So it looks like there's no quick & dirty way to bypass a seized compressor pulley bearing.
Full disclosure: I bought a new pulley/bearing yesterday, and tried to remove the old one using many Youtube videos as a guide. Mistake! The newer
Porsche
compressors don't use a 10mm bolt-on the pulley. I wasn't aware until too late that it was actually a 7mm hex head on the end of the compressor's shaft. The pulley is threaded on the end. So instead of loosening what looked like a bolt CCW, I was actually tightening the pulley on to the shaft. Not realizing my mistake, I actually used an impact driver which just rounded the shaft's hex head.
Tomorrow, I'll try using the special tool which is designed to un-wind the pulley by turning it CCW (belt off) using an impact wrench. It is supposed to loosen the pulley so it can be removed by hand.
See this video. At about 8:30 he shows the tool and how to use it.
I hope it works and that I didn't inadvertently tighten the pulley too much for the tools to work it loose. I'll keep you updated.
No, I never found any way to bypass the compressor if the hub bearing froze or to eliminate it for weight-saving. But that isn't why I was asking. I wanted to try to bypass the compressor to be sure it was causing my new "whirring" noise.
Seems scary that a frozen bearing or other AC compressor malfunction could leave you stranded. I know that can happen with a water pump, but AC isn't essential and it seems like there should be a work-around.
Here's the video I referenced above - don't know why the link is missing:
Denso Pulley Replacement
This can be done reasonably easy with the compressor mounted in the car. Just remove the engine cover behind the seats. You'll need a 30mm socket and breaker bar to loosen the serpentine belt tension.
Just to add a conclusion to his thread. I was able to remove the AC compressor hub (and then the pulley) using this tool:
A/C Compressor Clutch Removal Tool for Denso 6SEU & 7SEU Compressors
. To use, you'll need an impact wrench and a 27mm (or 1 3/16") 1/2" socket. Once the hub was removed I had access to the snap-ring which held the hub on the compressor shaft. I highly recommend using a hub/gear puller (min 5" spread) to remove the hub because it isn't going anywhere without lots of persuasion.
I began noticing a strange noise in my 2010 Cayman about a month ago. At first I suspected the water pump which had about 50K miles on it. Accessing the engine from behind the seats and removing the serpentine belt, the WP seemed fine: no leaking and spun easily & silently. Both the PS pump and AC compressor made some noise and had minor resistance when spinning. I wasn't sure if that was normal. I restored the belt and ran the engine. Using a stethoscope I could hear some sound from both PS and AC. I decided to button things up and continue using the car until the sound got louder. After a couple weeks, it seemed much louder so I opened it again and could hear more noise coming from the AC compressor.
So I ordered a new pulley/bearing and studied many You-tube vids on replacing the bearing. That was a mistake since they all said the pulley was held by a bolt. In the newer "clutchless" Denso compressors, that is actually a hex end to the compressor drive-shaft. So see the video I linked in the first post to see the process for a slightly different model. The main difference for ours is a a flexible dust cover is present instead of the large retainer ring. Just pop it off gently with a screwdriver.
Hey man i know this is an old thread but i was wondering what was your work around to getting the pulley off. I am having the same issue on a Mercedes ML350 the 7mm shaft is rounded so when i feed the socket through the 3 prong clutch tool and try to loosen the hub the shaft just skips inside the socket. Any help or reply would be super helpful.
