AC Compressors and Clutches for Acura RDX SUV
The Acura RDX is the first ever compact luxury crossover SUV from Acura. The RDX is the successor to the MDX SUV, and most parts are compatible with the two models, including AC compressors and clutches. The AC compressors and clutches for RDX form the system that is responsible for air conditioning.
How do you detect a faulty AC compressor?The AC compressor, as the name suggests, compresses the refrigerant. The refrigerant is usually Freon gas, and when it is compressed, it turns into a liquid. When this newly formed liquid is released to the engine, it leaves a cooling effect as it evaporates to air. Therefore, a faulty one will not be able to pressurize the neon gas, thus the air conditioning stops working efficiently. The AC compressor derives its energy from the flywheel of the vehicle.
How do you detect faulty AC Clutches?The clutch acts as the controller, determining when to engage and when to disengage or vary the speed. It is necessary because the flywheel runs continuously as long the Acura is moving. A failure in the clutch is apparent when the air conditioning system of the RDX depicts erratic behavior, such as working intermittently. To troubleshoot the problem facing the cooling system, you need to understand how the two work together.
- Each of the two parts has a friction plate that comes into contact with one another whenever it is magnetized.
- Magnetizing occurs because there is a coil of wire that becomes magnetic whenever an electric current is passed through.
- Therefore, to engage it, the coil is supplied with an electric current that causes the two friction plates to come into contact.
- The opposite action switches it off.
There are two general types, depending on the vehicle manufacturer:
- Integrated compressor units: In this particular type, the compressor and the clutch are combined as a single inseparable unit. In case of replacement, one must purchase the complete unit. The magnetic coil and the pulley connecting the compressor to the flywheel are also included in the unit. These are good as a long-term solution since they hardly fail. However, a failure in just one of the components will render the whole setup faulty.
- Compressor clutch assemblies: In this setup, each of the components is sold and replaced as independent parts. They are very convenient in the sense that you can just swap out the one faulty part and slot in the new one.