warning about rebuilt RV2 a/c compressors

eyemon

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I accidently discovered a serious mistake made by whichever commercial rebuilder performed the
rebuild on my RV2 a/c compressor purchased online from a very well known and popular auto parts supplier. Had I not discovered the defect, my compressor would have experienced catastrophic failure
involving it's crankshaft and connecting rod bearings. I am passing this on so that others know what to watch out for. I find it probable that there are/were other rebuilt RV2s turned out by the same person who worked on the one eventually purchased by me.
As most on this site know, the RV2 compressor was used on Chrysler vehicles with V8 engines from 1964 through 1979 and in truck year through 1980, with only a few minor modifications during all of that time. One mod was that earlier RV2s had a rounded shape oil sump. Another mod had to do with the RV2s internal oiling system. Up through at least 1971 there was a ball and spring installed in a drilled out port in the main body which regulated oil pressure from the pump. That ball, spring, and the drilled out port for their installation was discontinued sometime after 1971. The RV2 on my 1978 Dodge has NO port for a ball and spring oil pressure regulator. My RV2 shop manual for that year does not show one, while the 1971 shop manual clearly shows the ball and spring oil pressure regulator.
The bottom line here (and I'll wrap up the rambling shortly) is that I didn't like the rounded shaped oil sump that came installed on my rebuilt unit and in the process of exchanging the round sump for
a flat bottomed one from my "carcass pile", I discovered that the body of the rebuilt unit had a port drilled out completely for a ball and spring but was empty! That would have drained oil from the pump directly back down into the oil sump, starving the bearing at the opposite end as well as the connecting rod's bearings. Luckily I was able to scavange a ball and spring from the carcass pile so the only expense that I endured was for a new oil sump gasket. Naturally I got on the phone and ended up with no answers as to why the ball and spring were missing. One rebuilder even said that I was supposed to re use the ones in my old unit which is complete BS because normally the old core is returned for recycling and rebuilding with it's sump intact and sealed against oil leakage during transit. Also having purchased at least 5 rebuilt RV2s from different suppiers in recent years
they all come with installed (bolts torqued) oil sumps. One last fact----- Any RV2 will fit any year but
IF the main body has the drilled out port for an oil pressure regulator ball and spring then they MUST
be installed. The problem is that you can't be sure unless you remove the oil sump and take a look.
I sincerely apologize for having used so many words to say so little. I'll work on that!
 
Thanks for the heads up. Reading between the lines it sounds like you purchased the reman from rockauto and a1 cardone rebuilt it.
 
That's a heck of a second post, and grateful for that wisdom! Oh, and welcome to the forum from New Jersey!
 
Good info, and thank you for taking the time to inform us of this situation. Do you have pics of this issue so those of us who are mentally challenged...but relate better to pretty pictures...can understand better what's going on. ;)
 
Hi, This all happened earlier last summer before I found this forum and I didn't think then to document the situation with photos. However if you have access to a shop manual for any Chrysler model made between 1964 through 1971,
go to the a/c compressor section and you will see detailed blow up of a disassembled RV2 compressor. The view notes and shows the ball and spring above the oil sump and below the main housing. Sometime after 1971 but before 1978, the ball and spring (and their drilled port) no longer exist because of a small redesign of the oiling system. Hope this helps.
 
68 plymouth, Hi, you may be right but I had purchased that particular compressor in Sept of 2013 and didn't go to install it until the following June by which time the original sales slip had been thrown away. I have also purchased one or two from other suppliers so I don't know exactly who to complain to. In any case I wanted to add that whoever "rebuilt" my unit must have been paid by how fast the turned them out because the old gunk had never been cleaned out of the oil sump! Shoddy work if you ask me! Guess they figure that no one would ever know huh?
 
Samplingman. Thanks. I wanted to follow up from my "bio" the day before as well as to include photos of my Monaco, but I had spent so much time trying to do this site that I just bugged out and went to bed. I will somehow include a couple of pictures just as soon as I can figure out how to accomplish that.
 
Samplingman. Thanks. I wanted to follow up from my "bio" the day before as well as to include photos of my Monaco, but I had spent so much time trying to do this site that I just bugged out and went to bed. I will somehow include a couple of pictures just as soon as I can figure out how to accomplish that.

It's really easy. Just click the link in my signature block for a good how to

basically just look at the top of the window you type in and click the picture to upload pics or a link to a url

attachment.php
 
Rock auto does not rebuild but it definitely sounds like a cardone clean the outside and box it rebuild services. They must pay by the piece.
 
Yet another instance of Cardone junk. I reached out to these guys about a distributor that had major issues and never received a reply. I only wanted to given them constructive feedback.

If I ever need a rebuilt compressor, I will source it from Classic Auto Air. Or get the parts from them and do it myself.
 
reply to your private message

tallhair; This friggin computor jumped off line TWICE as I was trying to respond to the private message so I'll try again to do it this way before my head explodes. I'm no help at all as to who rebuilds the RV2 A/C compressors nor do I have any idea of what a core is worth. Although I've purchased 3 units online from different suppliers in the last 3 or 4 years, none ever required a core charge. I tried to chase down a missing oil pressure regulator ball and spring recently, the suppliers always acted as a middleman so I never could speak directly to their rebuilder. I would help out if I could but haven't got any of the information that you asked for. I hope this goes through to you this time.
 
tallhair; This friggin computor jumped off line TWICE as I was trying to respond to the private message so I'll try again to do it this way before my head explodes. I'm no help at all as to who rebuilds the RV2 A/C compressors nor do I have any idea of what a core is worth. Although I've purchased 3 units online from different suppliers in the last 3 or 4 years, none ever required a core charge. I tried to chase down a missing oil pressure regulator ball and spring recently, the suppliers always acted as a middleman so I never could speak directly to their rebuilder. I would help out if I could but haven't got any of the information that you asked for. I hope this goes through to you this time.

click the "keep me signed in" check box when you login.

I got the PM btw
 
Thanks much for your detailed info. You mention "rod bearings" vis-a-vis the RV2 compressor, but the Original Air Teardown video shows that there aren't any. Have you see them with rod bearings? Or do they have them at the top attaching to the piston.
thanks!!
Bruce S
 
Thanks much for your detailed info. You mention "rod bearings" vis-a-vis the RV2 compressor, but the Original Air Teardown video shows that there aren't any. Have you see them with rod bearings? Or do they have them at the top attaching to the piston.
thanks!!
Bruce S

This thread is 4 years old and the last time Eyemon was on this site was May 9, 2018.
 
There are no separate, replaceable rod bearing inserts (as is in an engine). What the OP meant was the rod/crank bearing surface (aluminum rod on steel crank) would seize due to no oil pressure.

When I got my 4 Seasons compressor last year, I had read this thread and others about poor quality rebuilds and opened my sump. Sure enough, no ball and spring, and old crud in the bottom of the pan. I sourced the ball/spring, added my 10 oz of R12 oil after letting the PAG oil drain out for a few days, and carefully torqued the sump back on.
IMG_4558.JPG


So it all worked for a while, until I noticed the front gas seal was leaking after a few hours of runtime (I put an oz of fluorescent refrig dye in with the oil, glows like crazy under ultraviolet) . So now I'm getting ready to replace that seal, too.
mvc-1426501s.jpg


Needless to say, I'm not a big fan of these crap reman units, but I don't know what else to do except buy NOS for $750. At least the 4Seas clutch seems to be working quite well.
 
There are no separate, replaceable rod bearing inserts (as is in an engine). What the OP meant was the rod/crank bearing surface (aluminum rod on steel crank) would seize due to no oil pressure.

When I got my 4 Seasons compressor last year, I had read this thread and others about poor quality rebuilds and opened my sump. Sure enough, no ball and spring, and old crud in the bottom of the pan. I sourced the ball/spring, added my 10 oz of R12 oil after letting the PAG oil drain out for a few days, and carefully torqued the sump back on.
View attachment 292535

So it all worked for a while, until I noticed the front gas seal was leaking after a few hours of runtime (I put an oz of fluorescent refrig dye in with the oil, glows like crazy under ultraviolet) . So now I'm getting ready to replace that seal, too.
View attachment 292536

Needless to say, I'm not a big fan of these crap reman units, but I don't know what else to do except buy NOS for $750. At least the 4Seas clutch seems to be working quite well.

I too got a 4-Seasons compressor and had the exact issues that you did! Sump full of crud and the seal went bad. My guess is that these units might be sitting on the shelf for a while.

I got a new front seal and it's been charged with R-12 for more than three years now and still blowing cold. I didn't know to check for the ball n' spring at that time, and no issues to date, hope it's ok....

Note also that reman compressors don't come with the EPR valve - you have to find that one on your own (most likely from a hostile jamoke on ebay).
 
I too got a 4-Seasons compressor and had the exact issues that you did! Sump full of crud and the seal went bad. My guess is that these units might be sitting on the shelf for a while.

I got a new front seal and it's been charged with R-12 for more than three years now and still blowing cold. I didn't know to check for the ball n' spring at that time, and no issues to date, hope it's ok....

Note also that reman compressors don't come with the EPR valve - you have to find that one on your own (most likely from a hostile jamoke on ebay).

As you probably know, the later compressors deleted the ball/spring. If yours is still working that's probably the case.

As for my NOS seal kit that I changed yesterday, it too was a victim of shelf sitting even tho (as you can see) it was a sealed kit. The highly polished steel seat that the carbon seal rotates against was totally corroded by moisture wicking thru the cardboard over the decades. I had to use the seal the reman people put in there and hope for the best, as I couldn't find an aftermarket seal kit locally yesterday, and had to button the car up. So, we'll see how this repair goes.

I removed the EPR from my existing compressor.
 
Yet another instance of Cardone junk. I reached out to these guys about a distributor that had major issues and never received a reply. I only wanted to given them constructive feedback.

If I ever need a rebuilt compressor, I will source it from Classic Auto Air. Or get the parts from them and do it myself.
 
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